


Connections

by jotc



Category: Eureka
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-04
Updated: 2013-09-11
Packaged: 2017-12-25 14:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 33,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/954002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jotc/pseuds/jotc
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Jack returned from 1947, he returned to a town with a different history than the one he left. When Nathan's particles were reassembled into a person, he returned to a different set of people than the ones he left behind. (Retitled - was "New Future, New Past")</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Contains spoilers for Eureka Season 4.

Jack nervously wiped his hands on his pants and wished he had chosen a more private setting than Cafe Diem. After four years, he had finally asked Allison out to dinner, and he could do without the audience. Not that it made much difference where they went. In Eureka, gossip spread fast, and any public setting suitable for a first date would also an audience. But Jack wasn't going to dwell on that. Tonight was the night he finally told Allison how he felt. The two of them had shared one precious, wonderful kiss. However, that kiss had come in the face of disaster. A big part of him had expected that kiss to be his farewell. Since then, they'd treated each other as casual friends, mostly because Jack had needed some time to put his life in order. Now he was ready to pursue a future with her, if she was willing.

Allison showed up wearing the same business casual she'd been dressed in all day. She looked good. No, she looked great. She sat down briskly and smiled.

"You had something you wanted to discuss?" she said.

"Really? Um, yeah, sure, lots of things. Over dinner. With some wine."

"Sure, okay. You said it was Sheriff business, but something more complicated than you could tell me about right then?"

"Allison, that was a joke! This was, uh, supposed to be a date. I even said, it's a date."

"Oh. I just didn't realize you meant a _date_ date. Jack, I'm sorry. I thought just you meant we'd agreed to a date and time." She looked regretful, but scarcely heartbroken.

"We kissed!" he said.

"You kissed me, and that was a month ago! And I thought I'd never see you again.

"True. Um. Well, we can still have a nice dinner, right? Come on, you've known me for four years. Just treat this evening as dinner with a friend."

"Well, I'm here now, so I might as well stay. But Jack, I need to tell you something. I'm dating Trevor Grant."

"Dating? Seriously? I mean, I know you guys went out a couple times. But you just met him, right? You guys can't be serious yet."

She shook her head firmly. "Jack, I'm sorry. But you've known me for years. You could have declared interest at any time. I'm with someone else now, and I need you to respect that."

"But Grant? Seriously? He tried, he tried..." Jack realized he could not finish that sentence without giving away their secret.

"I knew you would take it hard, and that's why I didn't want to tell you. I know it comes as a shock, but it's my choice. I think it's better if I leave."

"Allie, wait! Hey, come on!" He followed her out the door. "Why Grant?" he said, not realizing just how much he was raising his voice. "The guy is a cold blooded opportunist who's one step short of a murderer!"

"That is out of line!"

"He tried to strand me in 1947! I could have died there!"

"It was one mistake, and he already apologized!"

"Well, forgive me if I find his apology to be a little self-serving and manipulative! Seriously, Allison, Grant? Don't you even care what kind of person he is?"

"Of course I care! But it's in the past. He's already done everything he can to make up for it. Jack, he's reached out to you to try to mend fences, but you just keep throwing it in his face. And besides, what business is it of yours who I date?"

"I thought you might care what I think, after everything we've been through together!"

"And I thought you were my friend, not someone who's hanging around me because you wanted to get laid!"

That stunned him to silence. He looked away, then looked back, hoping for some sign of regret on her face. She stared back straight at him, as if daring him to deny it.

"Is that really what you think of me?" he asked.

"Well, what am I supposed to think?" she snapped.

He didn't answer, and for a long moment, the silence hung between them like thick heavy fog. Then Allison sighed. She said more quietly, "Jack, listen. I don't want to fight with you. But you have to realize that I'm with Trevor now. Whether or not you approve is irrelevant. I need you to act respectfully toward the person I am dating, regardless of whether or not you approve. If you can't do that, you can't be in my life."

She looked at him expectantly. His throat felt thick, but he could see her losing patience. "Yeah, okay. Um. Yeah. I'll just..."

She nodded, and strode off, her heels clicking firmly and decisively on the sidewalk.

#

Jack wasn't sure how long he stared out at the empty street before Andy walked up. Jack didn't exactly want company, but at least it was Andy. His robotic deputy wasn't one to pass judgment, at least not on personal matters. Andy offered him a foil-wrapped tray and an iced mocha.

"Hi Boss," Andy said cheerfully. "I thought you might want some privacy, so I asked Vincent to pack up your dinner. Plus a little sugar never hurts a person's mood."

Jack's face flushed hot. "You heard all that, didn't you?"

"Well, don't be cross. I could hardly help it." Andy tapped the side of his head. "You know these ears, they can pick up a mosquito on a buzz saw. And you were speaking kind of loud."

"How loud? Did anyone else hear me mention time travel?"

"Nope. Human ears would hear raised voices but no words."

"Good. That wasn't exactly my finest moment," Jack admitted.

"I guess not, but I understand. Nobody likes being rejected."

"Yeah, but it's more than that. I lost out once before, when I saw her get together with her ex-husband. It stung some, but she really loved Nathan. And for as much as he drove me crazy, I knew he really loved her too. What hurts is losing out to that scumbag. Especially after I promised Stark I'd look after her. It was the one thing he asked me for when he knew he was going to die."

"Okay, I can see why a promise like that would weigh on you. But did he actually mean looking after her choice in dates? Boss, but she's a grown woman, and that sounds kinda patronizing."

"Um. Yeah. When you put it that way..." Jack rubbed his face. "I guess not. I guess he meant, more like, be there while she was grieving, not pick out her next husband. Not that she's going to marry him. Hopefully. Crap. You're right, I was really out of line tonight."

"Boss, can I ask you a different question?"

"Yeah, why not, I don't think this night can get any more awkward, so go for it."

"How did Dr. Stark die? Because in our history, no one knows. No one even knows for sure if he's dead at all. He just up and disappeared one day."

"What? You guys didn't have the time loop? You know, when he was about to re-marry Allison?"

"They sure wouldn't have gotten married again. They could hardly stand to look at each other."

"Oh." That was a strange thought. Jack vividly remembered how Allison had glowed with happiness prior to her wedding. He also remembered how her face had crumpled when he told her the news. "Um. I guess things were different in my timeline. It started with an accident in the time lab..."

When Jack finished, he felt almost relieved. Andy made a good listener. Jack realized with some surprise that he had never shared the whole tale from start to finish. Stark's death had taken center stage, as well it should.

"How did things happen here?" he asked.

"Dr. Stark worked with a Leo Weinbrenner in the cosmology lab. They handled timekeeping, but that was just a sideline. Then one day, Leo's charred body was found in the lab, and Dr. Stark disappeared. No one ever heard from him again. And a really expensive atomic clock was vandalized. Dr. Stark didn't have the best reputation, so a lot of people thought that either he murdered Dr. Weinbrenner, or he was trying to sabotage the clock and something went wrong."

Jack swallowed hard and found to his surprise that he was blinking back tears.

"Sorry. Talking about it kind of brings it all back. It's just... He must have died just like he did in my timeline, except he was alone when it happened, and nobody knows what he did for us. You know, I always used to think he'd come back? It was the last thing he said to me. See you around, Jack. I used to think maybe he knew a way back."

Andy clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Boss. That's rough."

"It was a long time ago, really. Thanks for listening, Andy. You've given me a lot to think about."

He owed Allison an apology, but he wasn't in any hurry to make it. After years of believing they were destined to be together, dealing with her rejection was going to take some time. At least Andy had spared him the task of having to go back inside to face the curious onlookers. Jack took his foil-wrapped dinner and headed home.


	2. Chapter 2

No Smart House other than S.A.R.A.H. truly lived up to the name. Some houses handled rote chores like watering the lawn, others handled slightly more demanding tasks such as emailing grocery orders in or monitoring security systems, but only S.A.R.A.H. had a sense of personhood and the ability to defy her creators, should she so choose. Sometimes she felt proud of her uniqueness, but at other times, she wished she had another residence to turn to for advice.

Ever since his disastrous date with Allison Blake, her friend and resident had been unhappy. Jack didn't show it outwardly as he sometimes had in the past. He didn't call in sick to work or pour beer on his cereal. But S.A.R.A.H. could see it in the way he never bothered to joke with her or complain about the low-cholesterol meals she prepared him. She could see it in the way he put the game on, but didn't care enough to yell for his team. She could see it in the set of his shoulders when he left the house, as if bracing himself to face some nameless enemy. In her younger days, S.A.R.A.H. might have reveled in the fact that her resident preferred to hide within her walls rather than embrace the world. Now she understood enough of human psychology to know it wasn't healthy.

Since she couldn't consult another residence, she instead turned to her good friend Deputy Andy.

"Ever since his date with Dr. Blake, Sheriff Carter has been depressed," S.A.R.A.H. said. "Andy, you see another side of him, because you are with him as he interacts with a wider variety of people. Do you know why is he taking this so hard? Dr.Blake was never more than a casual friend, but he is more upset over one date than he was over breaking off his previous relationship."

"It's not so simple as it seems, Casita Bonita," Andy said. "We remember a history where Sheriff Carter was actually closer to Dr. Stark than with Dr. Blake. But he remembers one where he loved her for years, and never acted on it."

Andy then proceeded to tell her a truly tragic story. S.A.R.A.H. could envision it so clearly: Nathan bravely going to his death, Allison bereaved on her wedding day, Jack helpless to protect the people he loved.

"It's so sad for them all," S.A.R.A.H. said. "Andy, isn't there anything we can do?"

"I never did stop to think on it, since I had a whole lot of data to absorb," Andy said slowly. "But now that I do, it strikes me that knowing what happened in the other timeline might give us a leg up in figuring out what happened in this one. Dr. Stark himself dropped a hint that maybe there was a way to save him. But do you really think we can figure it out, if the rest of Eureka couldn't?"

"Most of Eureka hasn't tried," S.A.R.A.H. pointed out. "The data is all classified. Furthermore, we know about the Bridge Device. Even if we don't fully understand it, we know it relates to time travel in some fashion. Andy, have I ever mentioned that Director Fargo provided me with a high security clearance? I can access Dr. Stark's data." In fact, that was shading the truth a bit in honor of Andy's role as law enforcement. Fargo provided her with backdoor access to Global Dynamics because he wanted a way in if he should ever be shut out himself. The man had a paranoid streak.

If Andy suspected, he didn't say so. "If you think there's a way, I'll sure do my best to help," he said.

"Good, we have a plan. First, bring back Dr. Stark."

"What do you mean, first?"

"Well, that's arguably the most important part. But I have a second part to my plan. Andy, I know Sheriff Carter well enough to read between the lines. He liked Dr. Stark far more than he is willing to admit. Both of them are lonely people who deserve happiness, and I think they can find it with each other. Once we have Dr. Stark back, I plan to set them up."

#

Zane was taking a quick break at Cafe Diem when Deputy Andy showed up.

"Whatever it is, I didn't do it," he said reflexively. He hadn't, either. He'd stayed strictly on the straight and narrow for weeks.

"I'm not here to accuse you of anything, Mr. Donovan. I'm here to you to ask for your help."

"Great," he said. "Everyone rides me for breaking the rules until they have one they want broken, at which point it all becomes okay, because they can get what they want and it's my neck on the line, not theirs."

Andy stared at him earnestly. "No, Mr. Donovan, I'm not asking you to do anything illegal. It's not in my programming. I sure could use your skills, though. You see, S.A.R.A.H. and I have a plan. We're keeping it quiet simply to avoid upsetting people if it doesn't go well."

"Yeah, 'cause when do plans ever not go well here in Eureka?"

"Oh, plans go wrong here all the time. I'm surprised you ask, actually. Why, just yesterday—"

"That was a rhetorical question, Andy."

"Oh, yeah, rhetorical, of course!" Andy laughed and winked at Zane. From a human, it would have been annoying. But Deputy Andy was so sincere and genuine that Zane couldn't help but like him, even if he had a history of locking Zane up.

"Go on, tell me your story," he said.

When Andy finished his story, Zane stared at him as though waiting for the punchline. "Seriously? You want to investigate a two-year old accident involving time being rewritten? Do you have any idea how risky it is to experiment with time?"

"Yep."

"And you think you can save this guy, based on no particular evidence?"

"Well, Mr. Donovan, believe is a mite strong. S.A.R.A.H. and I just want to find out. Plus, don't you think it's odd that no one tried?"

"No, I don't! First off, no one knew what happened. Second, even if we did, no one in their right mind would risk messing with time."

"Ms. Lupo risked it when she came back from 1947," Andy pointed out.

"No she didn't! Someone or something else did, and she got caught up in it. Look, you yourself admit that the original accident could have destroyed the whole town."

"Well, yes, that is a drawback. But does that mean you won't even take a look at the data?"

Zane sighed. "Of course I'll look at the data. I can't resist a mystery. You knew that when you came to me, didn't you?"

Andy smiled his wide, sincere smile. "The thought did cross my mind."

#

Zane didn't exactly break the law, but he did bend the rules just a trifle. Global's records made a good start, but he needed more. If he was right, he could still get some residual measurements from the site of the accident, so he broke into Stark’s lab. He could have just asked Jo for access, but he didn't want to tell her why he needed it. Besides, the last time he'd spent the night with her, she'd refused to even speak to him in the morning, so screw her. He'd show her. He didn't need her help.

He hit gold right away. No one had bothered cleaning the place out. The equipment still functioned, and he managed to pull records from the key pieces. Then he found an old flash drive in Leo Weinbrenner's desk. Zane winced at the sight—flash drives were far too error-prone to be suitable for backing up data. Still, it would work in his favor, so he shouldn't complain.

Except he should have known that when things run too smooth, something is primed to backfire. He met Jo on the way out.

"I didn't think you had any lab space on this floor," she said.

He gave her an overly wide smile. "JoJo, you know where my lab space is? I knew you cared!"

That got a hint of a smile. He leaned in for a kiss, but she shoved him away, like he knew she would.

"Not at work."

"I thought not at all. Because last night was the last time, just like all the others, right?"

"Not at work! I can not deal with this right now." She stalked off, righteously offended. Zane beat it back to his own lab. He patched in S.A.R.A.H., and the two of them began to sift through the new data.

#

Jo was good. Sometimes Zane forgot how good. Most people, including most people in security, would have figured he was down in the time lab to connect with some other scientist and not thought twice about it. No crime meant no investigation.

But not his JoJo. She asked around, determined that he hadn't spoken to anyone on that floor all day, and then manually checked every empty room. Zane didn't even know what she had found to tip her off; he thought he had covered his tracks completely. And now she was furious. He probably shouldn't tell her how gorgeous she was when her temper was up.

"The Time Lab was broken into on the same day that I find you wandering around the basement for no particular reason. I thought you had changed!"

"Just out of professional curiosity, how'd you know?" he asked curiously.

"Zane! This is no joke! You have ten minutes to explain, or I go to Fargo."

"Okay, okay, I was just wondering. Look, you won't disapprove. Actually, let's go talk to Fargo right now. I think he'll find this interesting."

It was fascinating to watch anger give way to curiosity. Emotions warred back and forth, but curiosity won.

"Okay," she finally said. "But this better be good."

"It will be, trust me. But tell me, honestly, how did you know where I was?"

Reluctantly, she smiled. "Dust."

"Oh, come on! Dust?"

"That lab has been standing empty for two years, but you disturbed the dust. Honestly, I can't imagine what you want from down there. I figured you were up to some stupid prank."

She dragged him straight to Fargo's office. Fargo put away whatever he was working on and gave them his full attention. Zane suppressed a flicker of jealousy. Jo and Fargo had never been this close before the time travel switch.

"Guys, I'm looking into Dr. Stark's death," he explained.

"Why?" Fargo asked. His tone made it sound like the stupidest idea ever. Zane suppressed his temper and gave a straightforward answer.

"We have new data. In our timeline, we didn't know how he died. In yours, the time department's research hadn't progressed as far, and the records weren't as well kept."

Fargo nodded. "What did you find?"

"I've been looking over the data from the accident. I think we can bring him back."

Zane expected excitement, questions, enthusiasm. What he got was dead silence. Fargo and Jo stared at him dumbly. Finally Fargo asked, "Are you sure?" He sounded almost angry.

"No, I'm not sure! I'm just getting started. Look, I need to run tests, and to do that I need access to the lab. I would have just gone ahead and done it, maybe put in a formal requisition for lab time and put something generic for the reason."

Fargo had gone very pale. Jo moved to stand next to his chair, looking worried and awkward. Belatedly, Zane realized he'd misread things.

"Crap," Zane said. "You knew him, didn't you? I'm sorry I dumped it on you like this. I didn't know."

"That's all right," Fargo managed. "It's just a bit of a shock. I mean, it's good news. If you can. I just... give me a minute, okay?"

"Yeah, of course. I didn't realize. Neither did S.A.R.A.H. and Andy. This was actually their idea."

A brief smile flickered across Fargo's face. "It was? Good for them. I can't believe she didn't know I was close to him, though. I guess Other Fargo probably wasn't. Sometimes I really hate Other Fargo."

"That's harsh," Zane said uncomfortably.

"Is it? He ruled this place like a little tin despot, but he had no real authority. He never stood up to General Mansfield until I came along, and he got this position by nepotism. No, it was worse than that. He got ahead through nepotism, and then he got promoted into this position specifically because Mansfield knew he could be bullied. No wonder Other Nathan didn't respect him."

"You don't know that!" Zane snapped. "Shut up about him, okay? You never even met him!"

Fargo and Jo were staring at him. Zane winced. He hadn't meant to snap at Fargo. The guy was just rambling out of shock. He tried to explain.

"Look, the guy was just out of his depth, okay? He didn't ask for this position, any more than you did. He got pushed into it, and he had a hard time handling it. You're right that he could be kind of a paranoid jerk. But... he's the first guy who believed I could be worth something. I mean, besides my Mom. Don't get me wrong, I love my Mom. But she's loyal just because I'm her kid. It's one thing to have your mother stand by you no matter what, and another to have some guy with no relation actually think you could be worth something."

"I'm sorry," Fargo said. "I didn't realize you knew Other Fargo, just like you didn't know I knew Other Nathan."

"No, it's okay. I didn't really know him that well, on a personal level. It's just weird sometimes, being the only one who didn't hate him. Anyway, that guy's gone, and you're better at everything he used to do, so I guess it's for the best. Just don't rag on him, all right?"

"Yeah," Fargo said, and gave a shaky sort of laugh. "Actually, I know how you feel. About Other Fargo, I mean. Because Nathan Stark... he was that guy for me. People never understood why I looked up to him so much. He had a big acerbic streak, and he never hesitated to tell me what an idiot I was, usually in front of a crowd. But he was the guy who thought I could be worth something when I wasn't sure myself."

Fargo began pulling out paperwork. "Please tell me before you try pulling him back. I'll make sure you everything you need."


	3. Chapter 3

Jack was driving past Tesla High when he saw Kevin walking away from school with mud smeared from his sneakers to his elbows. He held a rocket under one arm. Jack had pulled over and asked, "How's it going, bud?"

Kevin had looked at him suspiciously, then admitted, "My test went wrong. I think it was a mechanical failure in the fuel feed. It lit on fire, and I had to quench it with the safety hose. I just hope I can bring it home and get it cleaned up before Mom gets home. She'll freak."

"Over a pair of muddy jeans? That doesn't seem her style."

"It's not the mud. It's just that she's always more upset than I am myself if something goes wrong with my stuff. It's like she's afraid I'll get depressed or something."

It was the most Kevin had said to him in weeks. Ever since his fight with Allison, Kevin had given him the cold shoulder. It stung. Jack had rapidly grown to enjoy his role as honorary uncle, and it hurt to be shut out.

"How about if I run you over to Henry's garage?" Jack suggested. "He can help you clean the mud off with his sonic vacuum. Once you can see it better, I'm sure you'll be able to figure out the fuel feeder thingy."

"Yeah, okay I guess." Kevin managed to make it sound like he was the one doing Jack a favor, but Jack didn't call him on it. He just got a tarp from the truck bed for Kevin to sit on. As Jack drove, the two of them made stilted small talk, but Kevin wasn't actively rude, so Jack counted it as a win. He was halfway there when Jo called.

"We're meeting at Henry's. Come as soon as you can," she said.

"Uh, I was just on my way there with Kevin."

Meeting at Henry's with no other qualifiers meant time traveler business. Since Kevin didn't know about the alternate timeline, they wouldn't be able to talk freely in front of him. Jack didn't see any way to ditch him without raising his suspicions. But to his surprise, when he told Jo he was on his way over with Kevin, she said, "Good. It concerns him too."

#

Henry set Kevin up with his shop equipment. The others trickled in. First Jo and Zane, both alight with suppressed excitement. Jo refused to give him the slightest hint. "You'll find out soon enough," she said, grinning.

"I'm still not sure we should tell Kevin," Zane said.

"If nothing else, he deserves to know how his dad really died."

"Doesn't he already know?" Jack asked.

"No," Jo said. "Oh good, here's Allison and Trevor. Come on, we'll tell everyone together."

Fargo was the last to arrive. He had come straight from his office, and still wore a suit and tie. Jack realized that he, too, must know what was going on. Unlike Jo and Zane, he looked sombre and a little worried.

They all took seats and formed a rough circle. Fargo opened up his laptop and said, "S.A.R.A.H. will also be attending remotely."

"S.A.R.A.H.?" Jack asked curiously. "Why?"

"She's been assisting us with a project. Or rather, we’ve been assisting Andy and her. S.A.R.A.H., would you care to do the honors?"

"Certainly," came S.A.R.A.H.'s smooth voice. "Over a year ago, Dr. Nathan Stark vanished without a trace. The cause of his disappearance was never discovered. But new research into time theory has revealed that an accident in the timeline pushed his molecules out of phase with this universe's standard time. Tomorrow we plan to resynchronize him and bring him back."

It was a lot to absorb. Jack sat stunned, trying to wrap his brain around it all. The whole circle sat in dead silence. Then Kevin and Allison spoke simultaneously.

"S.A.R.A.H., if this is some sort of joke—"

"I knew Dad would never just run off!"

"It's no joke," Zane said hastily. "This is real. Maybe we should have waited, and not even told you unless we succeeded. But all of us thought that if it was our loved one, we would want to know."

"Of course I want to know," Kevin said. "He's my Dad!"

Allison said, "Yes, but honey, you can't bring back the dead." Jack could hear the pain and grief in those words, but Kevin just glared at her.

"Dad's not dead," he insisted. "Weren't you listening? Plus why would you even think that in the first place?"

"I don't..." She held one hand over her mouth. Grant stepped closer and put an arm around her shoulders. "If I thought... Kevin, honey, I just don't want you to be disappointed."

Zane said, "Allison, please, let me show you our results—"

"No," Jack said. His voice came out too loud, too abrupt. The others stared at him. What he had to say next sickened him, but it was his responsibility to say it. "Whatever your results are, they need to stay secret. Time travel has a proven capacity to alter the past. You shouldn't have even been engaging in this research."

"Yes, but given the circumstances—"

"None of you know the full circumstances. I already lost four years of my life to time travel editing them out of existence."

"Allison's wedding? I thought it was just one day," Zane said, looking bewildered.

"Not that time! This was different. It happened about a year from now. Wormholes started popping up all over the country, twisting cars like tissue paper and threatening our entire universe. If Stark was still alive, he could tell you, except guess what, he actually couldn't because he lost those memories!"

"Jack, you aren't making any sense. If you lived through a different timeline, why didn't you tell anyone before now?" Allison asked.

"Because I didn't know myself for a long time. And then, well, it was kinda awkward to talk about. Actually, you know what? This is Henry's story to tell."

Henry shot him a look; half angry, half betrayed. Jack didn't care. Jack rarely got genuinely angry at the recklessness of the scientists in Eureka. Over the years he had learned to tolerate the high-stakes high-risk science the town excelled at. But every now and then, something punched through his equanimity and left him genuinely pissed. This was one of those times. He couldn't stand by and watch his friends put history at risk, not again, but he hated being cast in the role of Bad Guy.

"Henry?" Allison asked. "Do you know what Jack is talking about?"

The anger on Henry's face gave way to guilt, and to grief that clearly still held power even years later. "I do," he said. "I suppose I'd better tell you, at least some of it." He waited until he had everyone's full attention.

"You all remember Kim. I loved her so much, and when she died, I simply couldn’t accept that I was powerless to change it. I devoted myself to time research with the intent of going back to save her life. I thought I succeeded. In fact, I did go back, and I did save her. All our lives went on. Kim and I were together. Allison, you and Jack got married. You had a child together. Everything seemed perfect. But then, as Jack said, wormholes started popping up. No matter what I did to the data, I couldn't find a way to stop them. Or rather, I wouldn't admit to the way I did find. Things got worse and worse. People died. A lot of people. But even then, I kept silent. I told myself I would find the perfect answer.

"Jack was actually the one who figured out my involvement. And Nathan was the one who solved the math. The only way to stabilize the timeline was to undo the largest of the changes I had made. Kim Anderson had to die. Even when faced with the end of the world, I was..." Henry hesitated. He spread his arms, his hands clenched as if to grip whatever intangible force of fate had refused to cooperate. "I was irrational with grief. I fought him. Physically, I mean. Jack managed to stop me, and to restore the stability of time. As melodramatic as it sounds, he stopped me from ending the world. So you see, he has reason to worry."

Jack's anger had vanished by the time Henry finished his story. All he felt was deep compassion for Henry's grief. But on top of S.A.R.A.H.'s bombshell, Henry's story was too much for the others to absorb. Jack had intended for the story to be a cautionary tale. Instead Allison and Kevin fixed onto more specific points.

"You knew we were married?" Allison said. "Jack, how could you not tell me?"

"Er, I didn't, I couldn't remember at first, and besides, it hardly seemed polite."

"Polite? Honestly?"

While Jack fumbled for an answer, Kevin spoke. He looked straight at Henry as he said it. "Before you changed time, my Dad was still alive right now."

That shocked everyone into silence. Jack knew that Kevin's claim was off the mark a bit—the timeline in which Nathan never died had always been unstable. He just wasn't sure how to explain that. Henry looked stricken and didn't answer.

Fargo, of all people, was the one to take charge.

"I know this is a lot for everyone to take in," he said. “Zane and I will discuss the situation with Henry and check our conclusions against his experiences. But Jack, please trust me when I say that this situation is unique. We won't be traveling in time. We will be stopping someone from being dispersed through time. At worst, nothing will happen."

"In theory," Jack said.

"A theory in which I have full confidence."

"Yeah, how often have I heard that?" Jack forced himself to take a deep breath. "Look, you know I'd want to help him if I could."

"I know, Jack. You'd never leave anyone behind if you thought there was a chance to save them. I know you're arguing against it because you think you have to, not because you don't care." Fargo sat forward and looked at him intently. "But can you accept that this is our area? This is what we do here. I know we've had disasters and near disasters. But we've accomplished amazing things, too. And we've learned from our mistakes. Can you trust me when I say that we won't charge forward carelessly? I wouldn't risk the integrity of the space-time continuum, not even to save Dr. Stark's life. You have my word on that."

He spoke quietly but with firm resolve. This wasn't the Fargo who never met a button he didn't press. This was the Fargo who had been thrust into heading up G.D. and pulled it off. To his surprise, Jack found he trusted him.

"Yeah, okay," Jack said. "Okay." He knew his approval was symbolic, at best. He had no authority to stop them. But he could see some tension go out of the group anyway. "You're really ready to try this tomorrow?"

"Yes," Fargo said. "Seven A.M. at the time lab. All the equipment is already in place."

After that, Jack made his excuses and quietly slipped away as soon as he could. He wouldn't understand the science, and for once he had no desire to try.

#

Home alone with a beer, Jack tried to quiet his racing mind. He tried to imagine Stark coalescing back into one piece and walking out of the time lab as if nothing ever happened. The guy would probably straighten his tie, take maybe one afternoon off, then show back up to work on Monday like nothing ever happened. He wasn't head of G.D. in this timeline, but Jack figured that in any universe, Stark was a force to be reckoned with. He'd probably pursue Allison—if he even had to. She had never stopped loving him, and would probably jump at the chance to get him back.

The thought made something in his stomach twist; half happy, half sad. Nostalgia, he told himself. But all this was hypothetical anyway. First they had to get Stark back.


	4. Chapter 4

Jack showed up at the time lab early, but found the place already crowded. Henry, Zane, and Fargo were running equipment checks. Allison and Trevor stood close together. He hovered protectively, while Allison's face was a mask. Jack wanted to offer her some word of comfort or encouragement, but that wasn't his place anymore. Kevin held a meter and read off numbers to Zane. His face looked serious and intent. Jack suspected Zane of making up small tasks just to help the kid stay calm.

Jo and Deputy Andy stood off to one side. "Is S.A.R.A.H. here yet?" he asked Andy.

"I am patched in through Fargo's computer," S.A.R.A.H. said.

"If this works, it should only take a few seconds," Zane said. "First we run the quantum synchronizer to find the traces of time displacement energy. Starting... now. Fargo, do you see the trace?"

"The quantum signature is stable. I'm engaging shields now."

"Shields are good," Jack muttered.

"Initiating quantum stabilization protocol now," Fargo said.

At first, nothing happened. Then Jack saw sparkles, reminiscent of of the way Stark had died. They grew thicker and thicker, then took shape.

"Holy crap, it's working," he said.

"No it's not. Something's wrong," Fargo said tensely. "The pattern isn't matching up. It's not a clean mesh."

"Mesh? What do you mean, mesh?" Jack asked.

Fargo said, "He's coming back in sync with our time bit by bit, just as he became diffused bit by bit. But not all the bits are coming back in the right place. If not—"

"Yeah, I get it, it'll be like that episode of Star Trek when the girl came back all twisty!" 

"Worse," Zane said. "If the nuclei of his molecules come back too close, it'll trigger a catastrophic explosion."

"I was promised no catastrophes!" Jack said. "Explosions bad, doesn't anyone around here understand that?" Then he looked at Kevin and clamped his lips shut.

"We have to abort," Fargo said.

"What happens to my Dad if you stop halfway?" Kevin asked. Faint traces of gold dust hung in the air, forming a ghostly picture of Nathan's face. The traces had stopped coalescing, but what was present hadn't disappeared.

"I'm not sure we'll get another go," Zane said. "Fargo, wait! Crap, we should have anticipated this. We have him in a stasis field, but it's not sensing all of him, because he's still distributed over time. The parts of him that are out of phase are coalescing enough so his heart is trying to beat. I'm adjusting the field. We need to broaden the stasis effect so it cuts across quantum realities. And be ready if you have to do CPR." Zane's fingers flew over the control panels. "S.A.R.A.H., can you get me the numbers?"

"Already done. I'm sending them to the control panel now," S.A.R.A.H. said.

"Fargo, resume quantum stabilization."

"Resuming... now."

The dust thickened, and Nathan's face took shape. Subconsciously, Jack had expected to see the same wistful smile he remembered from when he saw Nathan disappear. That smile had been the warmest, most open expression he'd ever seen on Nathan's face. Instead, Nathan stood slumped forward, his hand outstretched as to brace himself on a piece of equipment that had long since been moved. The stasis field held him steady. Nathan's body continued to coalesce, and the glow faded until just a hint of radiance lined his features. "It's nearly done!" Fargo said. "Final stabilization... now. Zane, you can release the stasis field."

Zane dropped the field. The last of the glow evaporated, and Nathan collapsed. Jack and Allison both raced forward. Jack helped Allison roll him onto his back.

"Is he breathing?" Jack asked.

"I'm checking," she snapped.

Nathan stiffened, gasped for breath, and tried to sit.

"Easy, easy, just lie still," she said, but he continued trying to push himself upright.

Kevin rushed over and knelt next to him. "Dad! Dad, are you okay?" he asked.

Nathan blinked. He wasn't quite focusing on any of them, Jack noticed. "This isn't what it looks like," Nathan said. "There was an accident. Weinbrenner. My assistant. After he got redacted, he..." He gasped for breath.

"We know," Allison said.

"How? No one remembered, before. Is the timeline stable?"

"Yes, it is," Allison said firmly. "Nathan, just sit still and rest for a minute, okay? We had to stop your heart."

"I'm fine." He shoved her hand away and pushed himself up. His gaze fixed on Kevin. "Hey," he said, and managed a pain-filled smile. "Kevin. I guess some time has passed. How long?"

"Two years. Dad..." Kevin's voice broke. Nathan grabbed his hand and gripped it tightly.

"Nathan, just just lie down on the stretcher, okay?" Allison said. "I'll tell you everything, but right now we need to get you to the infirmary. Your heart rate is through the roof."

"Where's Jack?" Nathan asked.

"I'm right here," Jack said.

"Make sure... don't let anyone change anything. It was an accident. No witnesses but me. But I didn't... Jack, just make sure the scene is secured. The lab may hold traces of evidence."

"Hey, hey, no one's accusing you of anything!"

"They will."

Fargo stepped forward. "Dr. Stark, may I say how glad we are to have you back."

"Director." Nathan's tone was flat. "Why are you here?"

Fargo looked taken aback. "To help with the procedure."

"If everyone could just step back for a moment," Allison said, with steel in her tone. Jack and Fargo obediently moved away. Kevin stayed next to Nathan, presumably thinking she didn't mean him. It was just as well; Jack saw how tightly Nathan gripped his hand. Allison then pulled out a syringe and injected it into Nathan's arm.

A look of panic crossed Nathan's face. "Jack, please. Don't let anyone tamper with anything. You have to make sure the evidence is intact."

"Easy, take it easy, I'll handle it, okay?" he said.

Nathan nodded. Then the sedative began to take effect,and the stress on his face melted into a drugged out fuzziness. His eyes slowly drifted shut.

"Did you have to drug him?" Jack asked.

"Oh, let me think. He just had his heart stopped, he was tachycardic, and he was on the verge of working himself into a panic attack. Did I have to sedate him? That's a tough one!"

"I just, I..."

Allison sighed. "Sorry. It's been strange. I need to get him down to the infirmary so we can check out his heart. Right now, things look pretty good. He was lucid, articulate, he had no difficulty breathing, and he obviously remembers what happened. I did notice he was favoring his left side. I'll fill you in on the details as soon as I know more."

Jack helped move Nathan onto the stretcher. Then Allison wheeled him off. Kevin followed, and grabbed on to his hand again as soon as he had a chance. The rest of them looked at each other awkwardly, with a mix of elation and discomfort.

"Well. Hey. Congratulations, guys," Jack said. He could feel his face breaking out into a wide grin. "You did it! Trust Stark to try micromanage his own rescue. Jo, you want to help me seal up this room so I don't get bitched out when he sees me?"

"I don't think he likes me very much," Fargo said, but he was grinning broadly.

"Give it time," Henry advised. "You'll win him over."

"Which I can do, because he's alive!" Fargo pumped his fist. Zane grinned, and Jo offered him a rare public hug. and "My office, guys, let's celebrate!"


	5. Chapter 5

Nathan woke exhausted, in pain, and with his head still fuzzy from drugs. Instinct made him lie very still so he could get a read on the situation before he opened his eyes. But that alone was enough to tip off the nurse. Probably he had been restless when climbing out of his drugged sleep, and she had noticed his lack of motion.

"Good morning," she said, smiling. He didn't recognize her voice. Once he had known every Eureka employee; she must be a new hire. "You've got quite a crowd of people who would like to see you."

"No. No visitors. Except Sheriff Carter, will you tell him I need to speak to him?"

"Are you sure, Dr. Stark? Your son is waiting outside. You've been missing for two years, and I'm sure he'd like to see you."

Everything pressed in on him. He wasn't really ready to see his son. He had no energy left to be the strong and reassuring father, or to figure out how to talk to a child who was two years older than he remembered. He could hardly say no, though. He closed his eyes again and thought over the past few days. Or rather, since all the days had been one, of the past few cycles.

#

On the morning of the first loop, Nathan had woken up and gone in to work as usual. He knew something was wrong when Jack showed up at his lab, holding two folders. Every once in a while, Jack came to him with some scientific question, but Nathan could see in his face that this was different.

"You've both been redacted," Jack said. "I'm sorry."

Nathan's assistant Leo took it hard. He argued, trying to defend the worth of their work. Nathan tried to tune him out and let Jack handle it, but as Leo rambled on, Nathan lost patience.

"You're talking to the wrong guy," he said. "Leo, take it up with Fargo, or better yet, don't bother. The guy's an idiot, and he wants rid of anyone that threatens his precious little empire. Even down here in the basement, that blowhard is still scared of me. I'm sorry you got caught up in it, but the fact is, he wants me out of Global and you got caught in the crossfire. You might as well suck it up, because Fargo's not going to change. That type of idiocy has no cure but a bullet."

"Don't," Jack said sharply. "That kind of talk needs to stop right now."

"Jack, I was just—"

"Just nothing. Nathan." Jack took a deep breath and shoved his hands in his pockets, looking deeply uncomfortable. "You're considered a security risk. The reason I'm the one bringing you the news is because I've been ordered to escort you off the premises immediately."

Nathan could feel himself smiling; a stress response with no humor in it. "What I said wasn't meant as a threat."

"I know. But I have my orders. Nathan, you have ten minutes to grab any personal items you need, and then I'm walking you out of the building."

"Jack, come on. I have tests I need to wrap up. This equipment is delicate. Give me the day at least."

Jack looked torn. Nathan argued, and he thought he might win Jack over until he made the mistake of trying to defend his 'bullet' comment. He hadn't meant it for a threat, he said, just as an observation that Fargo was going to be the same guy until he died. But putting that into words sounded even more like a threat, and Jack's face turned closed off and stubborn. Both of them had stopped paying attention to Leo.

Then something flashed. Blue light filled the room, and Nathan felt a brief moment of disorientation.

"What the frak was that?" Jack demanded.

"Sorry, sorry, hit the wrong switch," Leo babbled.

"Shut it all down now," Jack said. "I'll wait."

"Leo, what did you do? We need to know if that had any lingering after-effects," Nathan said.

"No," Jack said. "No more stalling. We're done here. Shut it all down, now."

So under Jack's watchful eye, Nathan shut off his multi-million dollar instruments, thus losing key data and compromising a year and a half's worth of experiments. Then he let Jack escort him out of the building like some kind of criminal. The worst part was that he knew Jack didn't even mean to be cruel. Jack took no pleasure in any of this; in fact, Jack was his closest friend.

#

The next morning, Nathan woke with a nasty headache. He'd spent yesterday afternoon polishing his resume and calling old contacts, and today would be more of the same. He pulled up his spreadsheet and began looking through job postings. Then he got a call from Leo, wondering where he was.

"It's just that you're never late," Leo said. Nathan checked the date on his watch. He must have dreamed the redaction, and then confused his dream for reality. His cheeks burned, but fortunately no one could see.

"Minor delay, I'll be along shortly," he said.

"You're feeling okay, though?"

"Fine, I'll be right there."

Leo was already at it when he arrived. Then Jack showed up, folders in hand. Nathan felt a disorienting wave of deja vu, and then he put it together. He knew why his dream had felt so real, why the equipment had flashed blue yesterday, and why Leo had wondered if he was feeling all right. Leo had done something so colossally stupid that he had no words.

"You've both been redacted," Jack said. "I'm sorry."

It took Nathan a moment to find his voice. Jack naturally assumed his reaction was due to getting redacted, and waited patiently.

"It's okay," he finally said. "I mean, I was expecting this."

"I'm really sorry, guys. I need you to collect your personal things, and then I'll escort you out."

"Jack, please, I need to finish out the day. We had... a small accident recently, and I need to handle the cleanup to make sure it doesn't become a safety hazard."

"What kind of accident?" Jack looked like he was teetering between skepticism and concern.

"I won't know until I review the data. Please, just give me the day. I'd also like to put the data in order, to make the transition smoother for Leo and myself when we seek other employment. But I honestly do need to follow up on the accident. It would be irresponsible not to."

"Are you going to need any help with that?"

No thank you, he didn't need to be put up on charges or made to disappear by the D.O.D. Penalties for messing with time were stringent. "No, Leo and I can handle it."

"Yeah, okay. I’ll give you the day, but don’t let Fargo see you. Let me know if you need help, all right?"

He waited until Jack left, firmly pushed down his anger at Leo, and asked him, "What did you do?"

"I pushed myself out of sync with the rest of the world. It worked great, but I guess it had some side effects. I didn't mean to catch you up in it, but we'll be fine," Leo said defensively. "We can just study it each day until we find the answer. We don't even have to worry about old age, since we're not moving forward in time."

Only Leo would think that a good thing. He was wrong, though.

"I woke with a headache," Nathan said, and Leo turned pale.

"You should have woken in the same physical state you were in yesterday."

"Yes. Which means the loop's not stable."

He and Leo worked steadily, skipping lunch. By the end of the day they had generated some promising hypotheses to test. They'd have to wait until the next cycle to gather more data, though. Jack showed up promptly at 5:00.

"Did you get what you need?" he asked.

"Yes," Nathan said. There wasn't any point in telling Jack about the time loop. If things went wrong, the whole town would be obliterated.

"Why don't you join me at Cafe Diem and get something to eat?" Jack asked. "Say what you like, I know this must have come as a shock. Let me buy you a drink."

"Not tonight, thank you," Nathan said wistfully. He would have liked a couple hours of friendly company, and he appreciated Jack's concern. But he'd worked all day and never managed to shake the headache. He wasn't going to get a regular night's sleep; the time loop would kick in first. The responsible thing would be to lie down and rest a while, so he'd be clear headed in the morning.

But back home, he tossed and turned, and wished he'd spent the time with Jack. If the world was going to end, he wanted one last meal with Jack.

Stay on task, he told himself. Besides, time spent with Jack sometimes hurt as much as it helped. For Nathan, Jack was his closest friend and his unrequited crush. For Jack, Nathan was just one buddy out of many. Worse, in his darker moments Nathan worried that he was a charity case, someone Jack hung out with because no one else would.

#

The third cycle went much like the second, except that his head hurt worse, and he'd picked up a rip in his shirt. Putting Jack off was harder; he knew what responses to give, but he had a hard time giving them any more than perfunctory attention. Jack knew he was hiding something, and Jack could never let go of a puzzle. He eventually managed to persuade Jack to give him the day, but he caught himself making small mistakes. He caught Leo making bigger ones.

"This is it!" Leo said, near the end of the day. "Let's do it!"

"I'm not sure," Nathan said. "I think we're missing something."

"We can hardly make things worse."

"That's the sort of fuzzy thinking that got us into this in the first place."

"Yes, but—"

Jack opened the lab door. "Hey guys, it's 5:00, time to head out."

"One more hour, please?" Leo said.

"Hey, hey, Nathan, you're bleeding." Jack pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket, pressed it into Nathan's hand, and pointed to his nose. Nathan pressed the handkerchief to his face, and realized he'd already bled on his shirt.

"It's fine, it's just stress."

Jack put a hand on his shoulder and steered him toward a lab stool. "Yeah, look, I know this is hard. But you're a bright guy, you'll find something else—"

"I don't care about the redaction," Nathan snapped.

"Okay, time to level with me. Does this relate to the accident you mentioned this morning?"

"Yes," he admitted.

"But we've almost fixed it!" Leo said. "I'm going to run the photon stabilizer."

"Leo, wait! I told you—"

"We're running out of time! I know this will work, Dr. Stark. You said yourself, the equations are perfect."

Leo was working as he spoke. Nathan stood, but his vision greyed out. Jack caught his arm and eased him back down on the stool. Jack then turned to question Leo, but Leo already had the device engaged and locked in.

"The timer," Nathan realized. "It's not precise enough. Leo, abort."

"I can't once the mechanism is engaged," Leo said.

"All right, in that case we'll need to synchronize to universal time. Leo, I'm calling up the Swiss clock. You need to adjust the timing to be in sync with theirs." It took precious seconds to find and load the website. Once Nathan had, he showed a 0.2 picosecond difference between Leo's timer and the Swiss clock.

"You'll have to lead the timer, but not just by the difference. You'll also need to account for the time it takes for you to move your finger. Rest it on the button and attribute 0.2 seconds to that, okay?"

"I can't," Leo said. "I can't hit it that precisely."

"You have to try."

The counter ticked down, second by second. Leo hit the button. Blue light flashed. When it faded, Leo’s charred body sat in the chamber. 

#

At the start of the fourth cycle, Nathan woke wondering if he was safe to drive. His head throbbed so that he could barely think straight. His ribs hurt, too. He couldn't afford to lay around, though. One way or another, this cycle would be the last. He called for a company car. He wouldn't be officially redacted for another forty minutes, so he still had that privilege. But waiting for the car put him behind schedule, so by the time he got to the lab, Jack was already there.

"Good morning," Jack said. "Hey, is that blood on your shirt?"

Nathan looked down. He hadn't noticed, but the blood from last cycle still stained his shirt. "Nosebleed," he said wearily. "It's not important. You're here to redact me, aren't you?"

"No, I _was_ here to redact you. Now I'm here to ask if you know of any reason why your lab partner has been turned into a lump of charcoal."

"I hoped he'd be alive," Nathan said. "Things are bleeding through, but I still thought the reset might bring him back.

"How did he die, Nathan?"

"I can't tell you."

"Yeah... that's not how we're going to do this. Crap, Nathan, what's going on? I didn't actually expect you to know anything about this, but you tell me you do, and then clam up? Did you kill him?"

"I didn't... I shouldn't have said that." His head was pounding and he couldn't concentrate. He shouldn't have told Jack about time travel. It could get him redacted. But Jack wouldn't remember once the day restarted, and anyway it was better than being accused of murder. Nathan said, "I've been living the same day over and over. It's Leo's fault, actually. He tried to send himself back in time..."

Jack reacted skeptically at first, but he did listen. Finally he groaned and said, "Call me a sucker, but I actually believe you. Only in Eureka! You never make anything simple, do you?"

"Sorry," Nathan said dryly. "This one's complicated even by my standards."

"You and Leo shouldn't have been working alone. You need to pull in anyone and everyone who can help. I'm calling in Henry Deacon and Zane Donovan for starters. I'll run interference with Fargo. And I'll bring you some breakfast; you're white as a sheet. If you're lying, I will figure it out and arrest you tomorrow, you know."

He couldn't help but smile. He had been foolish not to ask for more help from the start, he realized. But he was used to being an outsider, and the thought of being accused of tampering with the timeline had instinctively driven him to secrecy.

"It's worse than you think," he told Jack. "I don't just need access to my own lab. I need to make use of an extremely expensive piece of equipment that I'm not supposed to have access to. There's this new atomic clock..."

Jack pulled a face. "Oh, fun times. Global's on high alert because of the redactions, and I already reported Leo's death. Yeah, okay, let's do this."

He left the conspiring to Jack. In the end, they had everything in place. With Henry and Zane's help, Nathan fine tuned the quantum synchronizer. He, Henry, and Zane attached the clock so the quantum synchronization process could be run safely.

Then the vacuum pump failed. He'd have to trigger the timer manually. Like Leo. But Leo had been panicking, he reminded himself. All he had to do was stay calm. He could do this; the only drawback was that no one would be around to bring him back. No one would even remember how he died.

The town would be safe, though. That was all that mattered. He would have liked to say goodbye to Jack, but Jack was off somewhere distracting Fargo. He tuned them all out and concentrated on the timing. None of this mattered if he couldn't hit the timing correctly.

The most frustrating part of all of this was the knowledge that if only he could get a message through, someone would be able to bring him back. But he couldn't, because no one was going to remember. He pressed the button, then let himself slump against the console. Time to let go at last, he thought.

The world faded out, then came back into focus, except that everything hurt. He'd have screamed, but something held him motionless as a bug in amber. He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, couldn't even blink.

Then he was free. He tried frantically to explain what had happened and to make sense of how much time had passed, of who was present and why, but he could barely focus. Allison kept trying to make him hold still, but he couldn't. Then she jabbed him, and everything went blurry.

#

The nurse was still waiting for his answer. "Sure," he said. "Send him in. But find Sheriff Carter, too."


	6. Chapter 6

Jack and Jo sealed up the lab. Then they returned to Fargo's office to wait with the others. Allison came back an hour later, looking very pale. She told them that Nathan had three cracked ribs, but no heart damage.

"He wants to see you, Jack," she said. "He's refusing all visitors except you and Kevin."

"Yeah, okay," he said. "He was pretty wound up earlier. I'll go talk to him."

The whole process had clearly taken a toll on Allison. The urge to offer comfort was a strong one, but Jack didn't know if it would be welcome. Not after how they had fought. Still, she was his friend. He followed her into the hallway and stood close by her, hand out as if to touch her arm.

"How are you doing?" he asked.

"It's a bit of a shock. I wish I could talk to him. Jack, I don't know what all happened between us in this timeline. I can't imagine what might have brought us to a state where he won't even let me in his room, even after nearly dying."

"Yeah, well... he's alive, anyway. You'll have time to mend fences."

"Yeah, I'm sure that he and Trevor will get along beautifully," Allison said bitterly.

"Allie—"

"Jack, don’t. I don't regret my choices. I'm happy with Trevor. If he were my Nathan, I'd go back in a heartbeat, but he's not. Things are different here."

"So you're not even going to give him a chance? Don't, don't get mad. I'm not saying this to rag on Trevor. I'm trying to be fair to the guy, for your sake. It's just, I remember how happy you two were."

"Jack, I appreciate that you want to fix everything, but I'm fine. Nathan doesn't want to see me, and that's probably for the best, because I'm honestly not sure if I can handle being close to him now. You're the one he's asking for, so go see him. Take care of him for me."

#

Kevin sat in a chair next to Nathan's bed. He was recounting the events of the past two years. When Jack entered, Nathan said, "Kevin, can you step outside for a bit? I need to talk to Sheriff Carter privately for a while."

"Can't I stay too? I'm like, the Sheriff's unofficial deputy."

"Not this time, Kevin."

"Okay, Dad." Kevin looked worried, but left without argument.

"I wish I knew how to get him to listen so easily," Jack said lightly. "Hey, what's on your mind?"

Nathan closed his eyes briefly. The guy looked exhausted. His eyes had dark circles under them, he hadn't shaved, and pain lines crinkled the corners of his eyes. Jack sympathized. He had come through the time loop feeling pretty rocky himself, and he hadn't had his molecules scattered or his heart stopped by a stasis field. He half expected Nathan to fall back asleep. But Nathan opened his eyes again and looked at Jack with the intense focus he had always been able to muster during a crisis.

"I need to know how you found me. Does time travel exist now, and is it public knowledge?"

"No and no," Jack said. "Or rather, a select handful of people know that time travel is possible, but no one knows how to control it. I'm really not the guy to ask about the science, but I can tell you that much. Zane said your molecules were distributed across quantum realities. He and Fargo put you back together, like Humpty Dumpty only with a happy ending. Oh, and you can thank Andy and S.A.R.A.H. for coming up with the idea in the first place."

"Jack, you have to stop them from going public. Fargo will go straight to the D.O.D. if you don't do find a way to stop him," Nathan said.

"He might surprise you. He's changed. That said, we can't exactly conceal your return. You're too well known, and Eureka is too small for word not to spread. What specifically are you concerned about?"

"Bringing me back alive might be the last puzzle piece involved in making time travel possible. Do you have any idea how catastrophic the results could be if that becomes public knowledge?"

Jack thought of his own experiences, and said, "A bit." Jack had been so concerned about the experiment going wrong that he hadn't spared any thought for what would happen if it worked. "Are your results actually reproducible?"

"I don't know yet, but we can't take any chances. If the D.O.D. finds out, they'll want the results, but that won't be enough. They'll also want to make sure no one can talk. If we don't act fast, I'll just end up disappearing into the system and never coming back out. It won't be hard to justify. No one's likely to question it if I get charged with treason."

"Okay," Jack said firmly. "First off, no one's disappearing on my watch. Second, no one's accused you of anything. Why are you so sure that they will?"

"Jack, you yourself suspected me of murdering my lab partner. I destroyed the atomic clock. That coupled with my reputation puts me in a bad position. After the Barlowe incident..." He shrugged. "Everyone expects the worst. Half the town thinks I should still be in prison."

"Still?" Jack couldn't help his startled reaction. Nathan looked taken aback by his response, then his face smoothed out.

"I just don't want a repeat of Kevin's eleventh birthday," Nathan said.

"Yeah, of course not. 'Cause that would suck."

"Your gift was thoughtful, though."

"Yeah, well, Kevin's a great kid. I'm always happy to, well, to make him happy. And... and I have no idea what I got him, and you're testing me." Jack sighed. "Look, I'm not trying to keep anything from you. But it's a long and complicated story, and you look like crap right now. Besides, the nurse is about to come boot me out. I'll tell you everything as soon as you get some rest, okay?"

"I don't understand," Nathan said. "Nothing should be different. Weinbrenner's experiment should have no effect on the past."

"It wasn't him. Or you, for that matter. Later, okay?"

"Throw me a bone," Nathan said. "Why don't you remember? Do you really think I'll be less stressed if you won't answer?"

"Probably not. I mean, it's you. That brain of yours never really turns off. Okay, here's the deal. You trusted me, so I'm trusting you, too. It's not my secret only, but I think I can speak for the others. You're not the only one who traveled in time."

Jack couldn't read Nathan's reaction at all, which probably meant he wasn't happy. Jack hastened to explain, "It wasn't deliberate! Well, not on my part, anyway. This guy in 1947 ran some experiments, and they had unexpected side effects, for reasons we don't entirely understand and probably can't recreate. But six of us spent some time in the past. When we came back, it was to a slightly different future. The world is the same, but some of our personal lives are a little different."

"Different in what ways?"

"Well, Jo used to be my deputy, and Fargo used to be your assistant. Henry was single, and now he's married. You stayed dead, though who knows, maybe somebody would have figured things out in time. And, well, a couple of other things. Look, we'll tell you the whole story later on, okay? But you can see we're at just as much risk of being redacted as you are."

"Who is we?"

"Me, Henry, Jo, Allison, Fargo, and this guy called Dr. Trevor Grant. He's actually originally from 1947. Not that it matters."

"I understand. Will you send Kevin in again?"

"I don't think the nurse is gonna let me. But I'll bring him by later today. Now take it easy, okay? Everything is gonna be fine."

Nathan nodded and let his eyes drift closed. He looked even more exhausted than when Jack had arrived. Jack hated to dump the time travel info on him, but he knew Nathan would just worry at the puzzle if he didn't offer some explanation. Hopefully, their conversation had reassured Nathan enough to let him settle down and rest. He and Nathan hadn't ever been close, but he hated seeing the guy so rattled.

#

"We screwed up," Jack told the others. He filled them in on Nathan's concerns. "I'd like to think it's merely paranoia or exhaustion, but sadly, I found his fears all too plausible. Fargo, have you filed any reports yet?"

Fargo shook his head. "Word's going to spread fast, though."

"Can we tell people he has amnesia?" Jack suggested.

Allison shook her head. "Amnesia is extremely rare, especially in people who suffer no other form of brain damage. It's too obviously convenient. How about kidnapping?"

"Kidnapping is more plausible than amnesia?" Jack said skeptically. But then he reconsidered. "Actually, he would be a target. He's a good candidate for ransom or by people who access to classified information. Or someone could pull a Tony Stark and try to coerce him into working on private projects.

"Kidnapping fits with the nature of his injuries," Allison said.

"We're going to need a whole scenario, though," Jack said.

"Leave that to me," Fargo said, looking much too enthused. "All those years spent playing D&D are about to come in handy. I can craft you a scenario that even the top D.O.D. minds won't penetrate."

"So long as it doesn't involve elves," Jack said skeptically.

"Of course not! A good game master tailors the scenario to the universe it takes place in."

"Just... show it to me first, okay?" Fargo had changed, but Jack still didn't trust him not to get overly creative.

”Should we move him to a more secure location while we sort this out?” Jack asked.

”Maybe, but he really ought to be on a heart monitor for the next twenty-four hours,” Allison said.

”How about setting up a space inside G.D.?” Fargo said. “There’s unused space in Section Five. Not many people have access, and I know their schedules. No one will question us bringing in extra equipment.”

Jo said, “If we really do hit D.O.D. interference, we can handle it much better here in G.D. than in someone’s home. Let’s do it.

Fargo sent an email ordering everyone in Section Five to leave for the day. Section Five hosted multiple high-risk experiments, all highly classified, so no one would question why. Jo monitored badges until the floor was clear. Meanwhile, Allison prepped medical equipment. Jack helped her move it into place. The team had the room set up in under half an hour. Then Jack and Allison went to move Nathan.

Nathan's heart monitor was attached not to Nathan himself, but to a young man called Larry Habermann. Jack sometimes thought of Larry as the new Fargo. Larry looked at them with a mixture of confusion and defiance. Nathan had left.


	7. Chapter 7

"If Dr. Stark didn't want people to know where he was going, he must have had a good reason, so you just leave him alone, mister law man," Larry said defiantly. "He has my permission to use my car."

"And the credit cards?"

Larry winced, but stuck to his guns. "Those too!"

Larry might not be as comfortable as he claimed with the situation, but so far as Jack could tell, he genuinely knew nothing of interest. On the other hand, Jack suspected that Kevin was holding out on him.

"Kevin, why don't I run you home?" he said. Allison had been paged back to the infirmary, but she had told him she’d be heading home early. Jack couldn't properly interview a minor without having a parent present, and he hoped Kevin would relax more in his own house.

Kevin thought it over, nodded, then followed Jack to his truck. He climbed in with visible reluctance. 

"How are you holding up, Bud?"

Kevin stared out the window and didn’t answer.

"Okay, you want to tell me why you're mad?"

"I'm not mad.”

"Yeah, and you weren't lying back there, either. Kevin, I'm on your dad's side. I just really wish I knew what he was thinking right now."

They drove the rest of the way in silence. He parked, walked with Kevin to the house, where the nanny was giving Jenna her bottle. Kevin retreated to his room. The nanny finished with Jenna, gave her to Jack, and accepted Jack's offer to leave early.

"At least you're not complicated yet, are you?" Jack told Jenna, and jiggled her until he got a smile. Then it struck him—this was Nathan's daughter, and he might not even know she existed. He wondered what Nathan would make of knowing he had another child.

"Jack, can I show you something in my room?" Kevin asked.

Maybe it was a peace offering. He carried Jenna, but as soon as he stepped through the doorway, his feet froze.

"What the hell?"

Kevin lifted Jenna from his arms, set her on his bed, then pressed another button. His hands froze in place.

"Force cuffs," Kevin said. "Mom's not due home for an hour. You and I need to talk. My Dad says not to trust you, and I want to know why."

"Oh for crying out... Kevin, this is ridiculous!"

"No, Dad thinking he can go on the run when he can hardly stand up straight is ridiculous. He specifically told me not to trust you. I'm giving you a chance to explain."

"I don't know! I told him the truth. Maybe, maybe he didn't believe me? Look, some things you should really hear from your mother."

"I'm not letting you go until you talk. I'll tell you one thing, though. You and my Mom have been acting strange for weeks. I bet I figured out more than you realize. If you tell me the truth, I'll listen. All right?"

"All right," Jack said, and started in on the tale of how he and the others went to visit 1947.

#

"Dude, that is so weird," Kevin said. "You mean my Mom isn't my real Mom?"

"No, no, Kevin, she is! She loves you, and I swear, she has always loved you."

"But not _me_ me. I was somebody else."

"Well, you were different. Look, this was months ago. You can't tell me you don't know she loves you."

"Yeah, I know that. But I could tell way back when it happened that something was wrong. Don't you remember that time I told you I thought she was on drugs? And she started acting all crazy and cheated on my school project for me?"

"Yeah, I remember. It just took her a while to adjust, that's all."

"To adjust to what? Jack, how was I different?"

True to his word, Kevin had actually listened without interrupting. He seemed to be taking Jack seriously. Jack didn't want to tell him, but he didn't want to risk disrupting Kevin's fragile cooperation.

"You had autism."

"What, you mean like Rain Man?"

"Well, not exactly, but close enough. Kevin, she loved you like crazy. But she was used to doing everything for you. You rarely spoke, except to her and a handful of other people. She felt like she so rarely knew what you were thinking, like she was shut out of your life. So when we came here and found, well, you, she went kind of overboard showering you attention. She didn't know what else to do."

"I wonder if she ever misses him. That other kid, I mean. It's kind of like he's dead." Kevin didn't sound upset, exactly, just thoughtful.

"Please, please do not say that in front of your mother. And please for the love of God don't say she's not your real mother."

"Okay, I won't say it, but you know I'm right."

"That's, that's a philosophical question that I am not qualified to tackle."

"You're different too, you know. Jack, for months I've been kind of mad at you, but now I know it's not your fault. You're not the same Jack."

"Aren't I? I mean, I guess I must not be, because I can't even imagine what I was thinking by taking you out on patrol. I mean, you're a minor. That's just irresponsible. But except for that, aren't I the same guy?"

"Sort of. But all that stuff we shared, that didn't even happen for you. Do you even know why we're friends?"

Jack groped for words. He couldn't exactly say, I thought I was hanging around your family because I wanted to date your Mom.

Fortunately Kevin didn't seem to expect an answer. He continued, "When Mom and Dad started having issues, Mom kind of inherited all their friends. She didn't even really mean to. But Mom's the social one, you know? You were always decent to Dad, though. Then later on when Dad was in jail, nobody came to see him except you. You showed up every other week. Then one time I won this contest to go to Space Camp, but I had to have an adult come stay with me. Mom was going to take me, but then she got the flu and couldn't go. Dad was in prison. So you took me. You took a whole week of vacation just to make sure I could go. You told me it was my birthday present. We had a blast, and after that you were like my uncle. So tell me, are you really that guy?"

"I'd like to be," Jack said.

"Yeah, I know. It's okay. I'm not telling you that to make you feel bad. It's just the opposite. You've been acting weird, and I didn't get why, but now I do. You're not the same person. It's all right, though. You and me, we can be friends."

Kevin held out his hand and Jack shook it, man to man. "Thank you," Jack said. "Truly. Thanks."

"Did you even know why I was so mad when you tried to date my Mom?"

"I thought it was because I got in a fight with her. But it was more than that, wasn't it? I was your Dad's friend, and it felt like I was forgetting him?" 

"Yeah. Wasn't it the same in your world?"

"Not exactly. Sometime I'd like to hear how things happened in this world. But right now, I need to find your Dad. Do you know where he's going?"

”He wouldn’t say. The only thing he told me was that he might get accused of being a criminal, but it wasn’t true. He said last time he made mistakes, but this time was just bad luck. He said he’d contact me once he found someplace safe."

”At least he left under his own power. You ready to let me out yet?

"Almost. My Mom should be home any minute."

Jack pulled a face. "I'm gonna be in so much trouble. She didn't want me to tell you all this."

Kevin grinned. "Yeah, I know. But trust me, I have an idea. I'm gonna leave you in those handcuffs 'till she gets here."

"Aww, Kevin, no! C'mon!"

But Kevin refused to let him out. "You wait and see, this will pay off," he told Jack, smirking. Then he settled in with Jenna and played X-box games. Jack grumbled, but Kevin stubbornly refused to let him out.

When Allison walked through the door, she reacted with shock. "Kevin, what is going on?" she demanded. "Did Jack try to hurt you?"

"Hey! I would never do that,” Jack said.

Kevin glared at him, and Jack took his cue to shut up. Then Kevin proceeded to manipulate his mother as only a teenage child could. Jack watched in amazement as Dr. Allison Blake, strong willed skeptic, bought every line her son fed her. It ended in Kevin accepting a hug with only a fraction of his usual protest, Jack being let out of the glowy energy cuffs, and Jack finding himself in far less trouble than he expected to be. Kevin winked at him while Allison phoned the others.

"We'll all figure this out together," she told Jack.


	8. Chapter 8

Later, Nathan wondered if things would have played out differently if he and Jack had been able to talk longer. Jack's words had felt like a punch to the gut. Even before Jack slipped and let out that he didn't remember Nathan being in prison, Nathan's subconscious had begun to tally up small cues. Jack's stammer was a bit more pronounced than Nathan remembered. His body language had changed in subtle ways. The Jack that Nathan remembered carried himself more confidently. This Jack had a slight shyness and an air of warmth and kindness about him that might have come straight out of Nathan's fantasies.

But until Jack reacted oddly to his comment about prison, these subconscious observations hadn't pinged any alarms in Nathan's brain. Quite the contrary; Jack felt more like Jack than the real one had.

And when caught out in a deception, Jack had immediately offered a good chunk of truth. It was a classic recovery move, but that didn't stop it from being effective. Nathan genuinely wanted to believe him. He couldn't take that risk, though.

He needed data, and he wouldn't get it lying around in a hospital bed. The smart thing to do would be to leave town. He had an old friend from college who might put him up for a while. Once he found a secure location, Nathan could assess the state of the world and determine how best to deal with his situation.

If he pulled the heart monitor off, he’d end up with a nurse here within seconds. Fortunately, he knew someone who would help. He phoned his old intern Larry, and when Larry was done weeping over the phone, the guy promised to come over immediately. He showed up within minutes, inflicted a teary hug on Nathan, then offered him a t-shirt and sweat pants, his credit cards, and his car keys.

"Sorry about the sweat pants. I know it's not your style, but nothing else I own would fit you," Larry said apologetically.

"It's fine." Actually, it was ideal. He'd attract less attention. “Thanks for doing this, Larry. I’m sure I’ll have my financial situation straighened out soon, but the bank closed all my accounts while I was presumed dead."

"Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Put this heart monitor on for the next ten minutes or so. I want to test my legs without anyone staring over my shoulder."

Larry looked puzzled, but he obediently put the monitor on. Only Larry, Nathan thought with a mix of affection and exasperation.

"See you soon, Larry," he said, and casually started down the hall.

#

None of the hospital staff looked twice. Kevin, on the other hand, spotted him instantly. Nathan sighed, caught between frustration and amused pride. His kid was a sharp one. Technically, he was Kevin's stepfather, but the boy's biological father had died before his birth, so Kevin had never known any other. Though at the back of his mind, a nagging little voice whispered that if the timeline had changed, he couldn't be sure of anyone, not even his son.

"I thought you were back at school," he said.

"Not yet. Dad, where are you going? I thought you weren’t being discharged until tomorrow."

"Kevin, listen," he said. "I need to leave town. Don't tell anyone anything, don't trust anyone, especially Jack. You didn’t notice me leave, okay?"

"Is this about the Consortium?" Kevin asked.

"Essentially. I want you to know that whatever I'm accused of, I haven't done it. Last time, I made mistakes. This time I honestly did nothing wrong. Whatever happens, remember that."

"Dad, let me come with you. I want to help!"

"I'll call you when I can. But right now, I need you to stay here and stay safe, okay?"

Kevin nodded. The kid looked scared, but determined. Nathan felt a flash of pride.

"Remember, Kevin, trust no one."

#

His plan was to drive out of town, take back roads to the nearest small town, buy a disposable cell phone, and call one of his old university friends. It was a risk, but he knew the guy he had in mind would at least hear him out. With no cash, no ID, and not even a change of clothing, he would need to trust someone.

He made it less than fifty miles, and he never even bought the cell phone. He heard sirens behind him. The two lane highway offered nowhere to go. Reluctantly, he pulled over. The officer didn’t bother with pretense. He cuffed Nathan’s hands behind his back and pushed him into the vehicle. Nathan wasn’t prone to panic, but when he saw who else was seated in the vehicle, his heart sank.

"Beverly," he said. “Fancy meeting you here."

”I hardly expected it myself. You know what’s funny, Nathan?”

”Please, enlighten me.”

”This little device was developed in Eureka.” Beverly held up a circular disk. He didn’t recognize it, but he was hardly about to say so. She aimed it at his face and pressed the button.

#

Nathan woke in Global's infirmary. Henry sat next to his bed. Nathan couldn't make out the expression on his face at all.

"You're awake at last," Henry said. "Do you remember what happened?"

"No," he said. He might, if Henry would give him a second to think. He felt weak and shaky, and his head hurt.

"You tried to leave town. Nathan, what were you thinking? You're in no shape for a road trip!"

"I don't..." Something about cops. Something about not trusting Jack.

"You passed out while driving. You're lucky you had your seat belt on. You have three cracked ribs and a mild concussion."

"The ribs were already cracked," he protested.

"They were cracked, then we patched you up, and then you cracked them open again when you drove into a ditch. Nathan, won't you tell me what's wrong? What possessed you to go haring off like that?"

He tried to remember, but all he could pull up were vague images. He saw Leo's body, charred on the floor of the time lab. Had that been real? He dimly remembered driving, but not crashing. He closed his eyes and shut Henry out.

One thing he knew for certain was that he wasn't going to bring up time travel. He'd made that mistake once before. But when? Henry continued talking, but he tuned out his voice. Then, he heard something else. Two other voices; one he didn't recognize, and one he did.

_Why isn't he responding to the scenario?_

_Maybe he is. Withdrawal is a natural stress reaction._

_He should be interacting with the Henry NPC._

_Give him time to adjust. His brain is learning to process information in a new way._

_I'm cracking up,_ he thought.

More gently, Henry said, "I can see it's too soon for this conversation. Get some sleep, Nathan. I'll come see you when you wake."

"No, I’m listening,” he said. “You said something about Kevin. Where is he?”

"With Jack. I'll tell you the rest once you wake."

He forced his eyes open. "Where's Jack?"

Henry sighed. "In 1947. Nathan, are you sure you're up for this conversation?"

_What the hell? I thought the plan was to keep it simple._

_I changed the parameters to provide a more powerful incentive._

The voices were a delusion, and he didn’t have time for them. "I need to know where my kid is, Henry."

"All right. After your accident, Kevin was obsessed with bringing you back. He ran experiments that he shouldn't have. They had... side effects. He ended up sending us all back in time. It did lead to the breakthrough we used to get you back. But unfortunately, his earlier work wasn't perfect. Kevin... he's slipped through time. Jack and I saw it happen. Jack tackled him, and by doing so was drawn into the displacement field. I guess Jack thought he could protect him. I've been working on figuring out how to pull him back into our time for good. But I could certainly use your help. You're the expert in this."

Nathan couldn't breathe. He recognized the symptoms of a panic attack, but recognizing it didn't make it stop. Conflicting thoughts warred in his head. Henry was lying. He had gone crazy. Jack had been telling the truth. He needed to share all his data with Henry right away to save Kevin, and he needed to keep quiet forever no matter what to protect the timeline.

Henry reached out and gripped his hand. Nathan flinched from it, but couldn't stop him. "I'm here for you," Henry said. "I know this is hard, but I'll be with you every step of the way. We'll get them back, Nathan. You know Jack will take care of Kevin, but we need to get them back."

He forced himself to exhale long and slow. That restored enough breath for him to speak. "Bring me the data," he said.


	9. Chapter 9

Henry spread out his papers on the kitchen table and offered him orange juice and toast. Nathan ignored the juice and picked listlessly at the toast. The hospital had discharged him on the condition that he not stay on his own yet. Henry had taken him in. When Nathan protested that he didn’t want to be an inconvenience, Henry pointed out that his garage would allow the two of them to discreetly work on rescuing Kevin and Jack. Since Nathan had no other options, he wasn't in much position to argue.

"Do you know where they ended up?" he asked, because if he had actually believed Henry’s story, he would have been frantic to know.

"Not yet. I have some search functions running, but my priority was reviewing the data. It would go faster if I could pull in more people, but of course we need to keep this quiet."

"Yes, of course. I just... I want to know if they're all right."

"Nathan, it doesn't matter. Even if history shows that something tragic happened to them, we can prevent it by pulling them back. We wouldn't even be making a change. We'd just be restoring history to its rightful path."

He nodded. "You're right, of course."

#

Nothing added up. Nathan spotted one error almost immediately, because he and Leo had gone down the same false trail early in their research. As he studied the information, Nathan found more false assumptions and wrong paths. The faults in Henry's equations eliminated one possibility. Kevin and Jack were not in the past. Kevin could never have sent himself back in time based on these equations. The question was, why would Henry lie? And where was Kevin?

By the third day, Nathan began to doubt himself. Henry had been nothing but kind. He hadn't heard the voices again. Hearing voices was a classic symptom of ill health--fever-induced delirium, certain forms of depression, and schizophrenia all came to mind. He didn’t think he’d run a high fever, but his memories prior to the accident were fuzzy. Henry claimed he was trying to leave town, but Nathan couldn’t remember why.

His ribs had healed up nicely thanks to Eureka's advanced bone stimulation methods. But the accident left him with recurring headaches and a persistent lethargy which he couldn't seem to shake. His muscle tone seemed fine. He began to take long rambling walks to clear his head. They didn't bring much clarity, but at least they bought him some quiet time without Henry hovering. But in spite of his growing physical fitness, he woke up tired and went to bed tired. Every little task felt like walking through water. Nathan knew that a subjective experience of fatigue with no biological cause was another symptom of depression, and that knowledge pushed him closer to trusting Henry's perceptions over his own.

And yet, the data didn't make sense. He kept coming back to that. Nathan trusted his grasp of physics far more than his grasp of his own emotional landscape. The landscape of math offered a refuge free from tangled human contradictions, and the math said Henry was lying.

#

Trevor showed up at the coffee shop at ten twenty-three precisely. He ordered a black coffee and a pastry. The young woman behind the register instead made him something called an Americano. The results were decent. Certainly what she offered him was far more drinkable than most of the stale, sour brew he'd lived on during wartime. In spite of that, he felt a pang. The board full of milky, sugary concoctions drove home that even the little things had changed.

His contact was due at ten thirty. By 10:40, she still had not arrived, which worried him. Making someone wait was a classic way to drive home their insignificance. Ever since he'd started dating Allison, the Consortium had viewed him with suspicion. He didn't blame them. He didn't doubt his ideals, but he had rapidly begun to doubt his execution of them.

The half century he skipped past held scientific wonders and human rights atrocities. But the more he tried to de-tangle the chain of events that led to one act or another, the more he realized just how complicated history was, and how impossible it was to tease out one single act that might improve the future. Scientists had come up with a name for this type of complexity: chaos theory. But chaos theory merely documented humanity's ignorance and graced people with some pretty graphs to admire. It did nothing to bring order and predictability to the world.

Beverly Barlowe slid into the booth at 11:00.

"I can't do this anymore," he said.

"That's not your call," she said.

"Why not? I've done my service. I'm not your enemy. All I want is to be left alone."

"No one walks away. We can't allow it, because we can't take the risk that you would talk. Bear in mind that all it would take is one word in the right place, and the D.O.D. would lock you away and never let you out."

They argued back and forth before she came out with her demand: the Bridge Device. She wanted the machine itself and all remaining research concerning it.

"It won't help you," he warned her. "I never did learn why it worked. The theory was incomplete."

"We want it anyway," she said. "Do this one thing, and we're even."

She smiled as she said it, but her eyes were flat. Had he looked like that when he switched jackets with Carter? 

He nodded. "One last job," he said.

"Good man. You won't regret it."

#

She left. Trevor nursed his Americano. Those were the rules; he was supposed to wait thirty minutes after her departure so they wouldn't be seen leaving together. It made no sense; she had surely attracted more attention by walking in and out of the cafe without ordering. He suspected it was another dominance game.

He drove from the cafe to Sheriff Carter's office. Trevor wasn't sure what he hated most about Carter—knowing the guy couldn't stand him, or knowing it was his own fault. It didn't matter. The time had come to eat crow. Carter looked at him curiously.

"I need your help," he said. He looked at his hands. Though he had come too far to back down, the words still came hard. "I'm... I'm part of the Consortium. They've known about time travel ever since you paid your visit to the past. They've been waiting for me to show up and tell them how it's done. They were more than a little disappointed when they found out I didn't know."

Jack's silence was grating on his already frayed nerves.

"I never told them about Dr. Stark. I never told them anything important, not since I came forward in time. I honestly don't know how they found out. I check for bugs regularly, but I guess I'm a little behind on tech, so maybe I missed something. The thing is, they want the Bridge Device, and they've threatened to expose me if I don't give it to them."

"I'm glad you came to me," Jack said evenly. "It makes this easier."

"You already knew," Trevor said.

"I suspected. Now I know for certain."

"Can we... do we have to tell Allison?"

"Is that what you want?" Jack asked. "To cover this up?"

He had the feeling he was being tested. He tried to push that sense aside and concentrate on the question itself. "No," he admitted. "Even if she leaves me over it, I want her to know the truth."


	10. Chapter 10

"I'm off to pick up some groceries, do you want anything special?" Henry asked.

"No, I'm good."

Nathan waited two minutes after he left—his standard compromise between making sure Henry wouldn't come back for something he'd forgotten and his desire to use every precious second. Then he logged in and began digging. He hadn't managed to push his way past the scam. Every email and report told the same lie—Kevin and Jack were in the past. It had taken him days just to penetrate this deep.

Henry shouldn't be back for another hour. Nathan knew the sound of Henry's vehicle, and he kept one ear tuned for the sound of the engine. The rest of his concentration went to searching for a way in deeper. The knock on the door startled him badly. He glanced out the window and saw one of the Andys waiting outside. The town had replaced Jack with a dozen robotic deputies. It pleased Nathan to see artificial intelligence in action, but he didn't trust the Andys. Something about their relentless cheerfulness put him off.

He frantically began closing all his work—though, on reflection, he had nothing to be nervous about. The Andy must be here to see Henry, and he could wait. Then the door opened, and the Andy strolled in.

"Aren't you supposed to wait for an invitation?" Nathan asked mildly.

"Nope," Andy said, smiling widely. "Dr. Deacon sold this property to Global Dynamics a year ago. And since one of my jobs is to patrol Global Dynamics, well, I thought I'd stop by and pay a visit to whoever hacked into our systems. You wouldn't happen to know who that might be, would you?"

Nathan thought fast. Since he'd already been caught, he might as well take a chance and ask the Andy for help. "I'm trying to find Kevin and Jack," he said. "I don't think they're in the past, which means that Henry must know where they are."

"That's a serious accusation," the Andy said. "Do you have any evidence?"

Blurry memories, intuition, and mysterious voices. He could hardly explain any of that to someone else. Even thinking about putting words to it left him doubting himself once again.

"Wishful thinking," he said.

"Dr. Stark, I can't help but notice that you've been kinda down lately. I understand. This is a difficult time for you. But you won't make it easier by pulling away from your friends. You're hurting Henry's feelings, did you know that?

He refused to be guilt tripped by a robot.

"He can tell you don't trust him. Honestly, Henry's spending all his spare time trying to help you, and you turn around and accuse him of kidnapping? Why would he do that?"

"Why do you know about this?" Nathan asked. "Henry told me he was keeping the details quiet."

"From the general public, not from me." The Andy tapped his chest. "I'm trustworthy. It's in my programming. Oh, clever, I see you wrote a program to simulate your own work and fake out our keystroke logger. Nice work, Dr. Stark. But why don't you take that energy and do something useful with it? I'll do you a favor and I won't tell Henry, so long as this stops now. Deal?"

"Deal," Nathan said reluctantly.

#

Jack had initially resisted the idea of taking Kevin along on patrol, but he needed to do something to make sure the kid came up for air. Allison said he’d stopped spending time with his friends. He spent every spare minute holed up in his room alone. Jack suspected that he was trying to recreate his father’s work on his own.

He wasn’t going to involve a minor in any active cases, but he had an idea. He picked a day on which nothing had gone Eureka-style crazy and invited Kevin to ride with him. They made a slow loop through town to "look for anything suspicious." While he drove, Jack entertained Kevin with stories about cases in progress. Kevin actually made a good sounding board. Twice he spotted a connection that Jack had missed.

"Okay, I admit it, you make a decent Deputy," Jack admitted.

"I told you so!" Kevin said. He was grinning wildly. Then, as though remembering he wasn't supposed to be happy, his face crumpled and he stared blankly out the window.

"Hey," Jack said. "Hey. Kevin. Um. Don't, don't be—"

"I'm okay," Kevin said. "It's just... I feel like I have to remember every second, because nobody else does. Except you." He caught Jack's gaze quickly, then looked away.

"Yeah. I know what you mean. It's not true, though. A lot of people are working really, really hard to get your dad back. You don't always see everything they're doing, but you have to have faith."

"Yeah. I just wish I had something to do myself. And I wish my Mom would dump Dr. Grant. How can she even stand having him in the house?"

Jack wasn't exactly Dr. Grant's biggest fan either, but feuding with him would only make Kevin more miserable. Besides, the guy had come clean voluntarily. After wrestling with his conscience, Jack offered up the truth.

"This might sound kind of weird, but I actually find him easier to tolerate now that I know he used to be part of the Consortium," Jack said. "I mean, I thought the guy had no morals. Now, well, I don't approve of his behavior, but I understand the impulse. The world is a messed up place, and he honestly thought he could make it better. That's an intoxicating thought. It can lure a person into doing things they wouldn't normally do."

"Maybe," Kevin said. "But my Dad would never have acted that way."

"Yeah, but the right thing to do isn't always obvious. Kevin, can I ask you something personal?"

"Yeah, sure."

"How did your Dad end up in prison?"

Kevin stared out the window for a long while. Finally he said, "I'll tell you, but we have to find someplace really private. You know, in case someone is eavesdropping on us."

#

Kevin explained he had visited Nathan's lab as part of Take Your Child To Work Day. "I showed up and he told me, we're going to do some real science today," Kevin said. Real science in this case meant trying to ferret out measurement errors. Nathan's calibration readings had been trending upwards. "It's like if you checked your thermometer every day by measuring ice water, and every day the ice water measured at a higher temperature," Kevin said. "Except the thermometer cost millions of dollars, so you couldn't just get a new one. You had to find out what was wrong with it. Plus maybe it wasn't even the thermometer. Maybe something contaminated your ice. Dad told me that your theories will never be better than your data."

The two of them checked everything—every thermocouple, every electrical outlet, every stray air vent in case hot or cold air disturbed the instruments, every source of vibration in case mechanical agitation disturbed results, every potential source of radiation, and even the possibility that Nathan's own bioelectrical field altered results.

"Nothing," Kevin said. "Nada. I was kind of bummed, but Dad said, don't give up yet. He had one more thing to check." Nathan suspected that an experiment in a neighboring lab was skewing his data, so he paid a visit to Section Five. Kevin wasn't allowed in any of the Section Five labs, so Nathan asked him to wait in an empty room. As he waited, Kevin daydreamed that he could contain the universe itself. The images came to life with startling clarity. Nathan came back frustrated, and said he'd have to submit a formal request because no one would talk to him.

"Something happened to me that day," he said. "Afterwords, my head was full of all kinds of thoughts. Like, did you ever just stop while you're walking down the street, and realize that you never look at the sky? And it's all full of complexity, with cloud patterns and wind patterns, and it ties into the whole globe? I felt like that, but about every little thing, all at once. Everything buzzing, and I couldn't keep up with my own brain. Except I sort of could, because my brain was changing."

Kevin developed strange abilities. "I could hear what people were thinking," he said. "I could cure sick people. That sounds like magic. I know it wasn't, but now that it's all gone, I can't explain how I did it all. I just know I really understood the entire human body. Did you know dogs can sometimes smell cancer? No joke. So maybe I smelled something. But I don't know how I did the cure. So much if it is gone now."

"Do you miss it?" Jack asked.

Kevin shook his head. "Before long, I felt like I wasn't even me anymore. I was so full of the universe, it just spilled over everywhere, and I was like a footnote to my own brain. Worse, maybe. Like a post-it note stuck on the cover of an encyclopedia, but the encyclopedia is the size of the Supreme Court Library, and the post-it is about to fall off. Plus I was dying."

Kevin had come close to death in Jack's timeline too, but something about the blunt statement sent shivers down his spine. Kevin continued, "When it all started, Dad asked me not to tell anyone, not even Mom. But eventually I got to where I couldn't hide things anymore. I would answer whatever she was thinking, even if she didn't say it aloud. So I told her the truth. I never saw her so mad at Dad, not even during the divorce."

From there, Kevin's memories became hazy. "I think it's because my head was so full of stuff that I'm not smart enough to remember anymore that even the stuff I did understand got lost in the shuffle," he explained. But he recalled enough for Jack to put the pieces together. Nathan had hacked into Section Five to find out what Kevin had been exposed to. He escaped the notice of Global Dynamics security, but ironically, not that of the Consortium. Beverly Barlowe had contacted him and promised him answers. Instead, she used him to gain access to Global Dynamics. It had all come to a showdown in Global Dynamics, much as it had in Jack’s timeline. Barlowe tried to kidnap Kevin. Nathan managed stop her and purge the influence of the Artifact, but Barlowe escaped untouched and Nathan ended up in jail for sabotage. Allison never forgave Nathan for concealing Kevin's condition in the first place.

"He never told anyone what happened," Kevin said. "I think he still worries that someone will try to get information out of me. But after that, most people in town didn't want to be seen with him too much. You were the big exception."

Jack shifted uncomfortably. Being cast in the role of best friend to someone he mainly knew as a rival was awkward, to say the least. Yet part of him found himself willing to step up, if he ever got the chance.

"Don't give up, Kev," he said. "Like I said, people are doing more than you know."


	11. Chapter 11

Andy's words nagged at Nathan. If he hadn't been holding back out of improbable fears, could he have completed his work? His one piece of evidence against Henry was that Henry's data didn't hold up. But maybe Nathan had been the one to miss something. Working entirely in his head made an already intractable physics puzzle even more tangled. He hadn't dared work online. But Henry’s desk provided him with an old-fashioned spiral-bound notebook. He carefully removed a page and began to write.

He started with Weinbrenner's faulty equation, then added in his own transformation. From there he wrote out his speculative set of equations, the ones he believed that the staff at Global had used to bring him back. Then he wrote out Henry's set. He separated the ones Henry claimed that Kevin had used.

Nothing made sense. None of this made any sense at all.

He heard footsteps in the garage. He hadn’t expected Henry back so soon. He folded up the papers and shoved them in his pocket. He’d have to dispose of them later. He shoved the notebook back in Henry’s desk and took up his usual spot just as Henry opened the door.

"Any progress?" Henry asked.

"None," he said, and let out a frustrated sigh.

"Nathan... there's no easy way to say this. I've been looking ever since you woke. Today, I found them. I know their role in history. That means they've been integrated. I don't think we can pull them back out without risking serious paradox. Here, take a look at these records."

_What the hell?_

_Didn't you see? We have the equations. The system is set to automatically divert his attention at that point. We can use him for other projects._

_And if it doesn't pan out?_

_Then we'll adjust._

_You mean we’ll blank his short-term memory again. We can’t keep doing that. We don’t know what the cumulative effects might be. The man’s a genius, we can’t risk damaging that incredible mind._

_You worry too much._

"Don't. Don't tell me. I don't want to know." It took no effort at all to fake the thin, distressed tone of voice.

"Don't you think it would help you find closure?"

"No! Henry, don't, I can't... I don't..."

Henry had said something, but Nathan had missed it due to listening for the voices. In the back of his mind, he considered that the voices had been silent until he underwent significant emotional stress.

"I can't believe they're lost," he said. "Henry. I can't give up. Kevin never gave up. Jack wouldn't give up."

"I won't argue, Nathan, but I'm going to leave these files with you. They'll be here when you're ready."

Henry set the folders on the end table. Nathan looked away, as though the lies inside them might leap out to ambush him. As Henry walked away, his foot sank an inch into the door frame.

#

Bit by bit, they put the pieces together. Jack worked with Trevor to feed false information to Barlowe. Trevor provided her with a modified Bridge Device, one which wouldn't function no matter what input it received. Jack and Jo worked together to plug the holes in Global Dynamic's security system. They knew now that the Consortium had been watching for Nathan's return the instant Zane originally broke into Nathan's lab. The Consortium monitored all suspected cases of time travel, and they had bugged Nathan's lab the moment he disappeared. A Consortium informant in the hospital system had done the rest.

Fargo spotted something off when Global Dynamics got handed a manufacturing project. His contact, Senator Wen, refused to disclose the lab who had done the development process. "Our business is R&D, not manufacturing," he pointed out. "We've never been just handed a project that some other lab developed. And the design style has Nathan Stark written all over it."

Zane then traced funding from Senator Wen to a company called the Advance Planning Institute. "Supposedly they research issues related to Homeland Security, but as far as I can tell, the only legit staff they employ specialize in Virtual Reality," he said. "The company supposedly has over a hundred employees, but I can only confirm nine. And I've linked cash withdrawals made by Wen to the time of Stark's disappearance."

Zane showed them a satellite view of a small office building in a rural Oregon town. "It's less than fifty miles from here," he said. "We can't tell if he's here, but it's worth checking out." The window sported a sign reading "Shaping the Future," which Grant had identified as a Consortium catchphrase.

"At a minimum, Wen is likely defrauding the taxpayers. I'd like more evidence, but I think I can push a warrant through," Jack said. "Are we ready to move in once I get it?"

Jo nodded. "Our top priority is making sure that Dr. Stark doesn't get injured in the raid. To foster that, I've prepped with knockout gas and tranks. If things turn nasty, we'll be able to subdue whoever's inside rapidly and harmlessly."

He, Jo, Andy, and four security guards would go in first. Fargo would circle overhead in Global's helicopter. Jack didn't entirely like using the copter, since it would draw attention fast. But Grant pointed out that the Consortium would see them coming no matter how they approached. "State of the art security systems, sport," he reminded Jack. "We'll have to count on speed, plus the fact that we'll be dealing with the scientific staff, not with armed guards."

"We hope," Jack said. "I'll know about the warrant by this afternoon. Everyone make sure you're ready."

#

Once he spotted the first, Nathan noticed more and more mesh errors. Most of them were tiny, but in one case, his foot passed through a chair leg. It left an odd tingling in his toes. That one got a response from the voices.

_Tell me he didn't see that._

_I think he missed it._

_Just make sure you get it fixed._

Either he was living in a virtual simulation, or he had developed full-fledged delusions. He preferred the former theory, and he would act on that theory unless or until he found a way to test it. Probably he had been inside a simulation since he first woke from the accident. Over time, memories of his first awakening and his conversation with Jack had trickled back. The first scenario must have ended when he tried to leave town. After that, the programmers reset things, removing Jack and Kevin from the scenario to provide him with motivation to work on time travel.

On the other hand, maybe his entire life had been simulated. Maybe he did not exist except as a program.

No, that reflected his fears, not his best assessment of the data. He had only started hearing voices after the accident. Everything prior to the time loop must have been real.

If his mind perceived the virtual world, perhaps he could give his mind a signal to wake up. The voices must come from the real world. He imagined his captors standing in the room with his drugged body, discussing the behavior of his brain. Maybe he could find some way to rig a signal capable of cutting through whatever was numbing his physical senses. He needed a VR alarm clock.

#

The vehicles approached fast, then came to a stop. Jack and Jo took point, and Jack yelled, "U.S. Marshals, we have a warrant for your arrest!"

Jo had the lock open in under fifteen seconds. Jack thrust it open and burst in, gun drawn. He and Jo walked forward side by side.

"Come out with your hands raised," he yelled.

Empty. Equipment had been abandoned, and no one was home. Jo didn't even bother using the gas.

#

"It's not a total loss," Grant pointed out. "We got the equipment. It looks to me like they moved in a hurry. I'm guessing they got rattled."

"Yeah, but probably not too much of a hurry," Jack said. "If they only pulled out once we got the warrant, our drones would have seen them move. Something tipped them off."

"This is odd," Allison said. She stood by a bed, and she held up a helmet with wires attached. Jack fought down a flash of temper as he imagined Nathan lying restrained in the bed, wearing that helmet. "This looks like it's designed to monitor brain waves, but the readings are unfamiliar to me. We need to get all this back to Global Dynamics."

Kevin sat outside. Jack sat next to him.

"I'm sorry we didn't get your Dad back," he said gently. "

Kevin shrugged.

"At least we know who has him," Jack continued. "And we know they want him alive and well. Kevin, don't lose hope."

"I won't," Kevin said. "He wouldn't give up, and I won't either. You know what's weird though?"

"What?"

"Mom. She's on his side again. She's not even mad at him anymore. They used to fight so much... I just wish he didn't have to be missing for it to happen."

"Things were better between them in my timeline," Jack said. He wouldn't say more. He didn't want to tease Kevin with the fantasy that every child of divorced parents entertained: that his parents might someday reunite. But part of him wondered if Nathan and Allison would find each other again. That would be rough on Grant, but despite his new understanding of the man, he couldn't help but think that Nathan was ten times the man that Grant was.

"I keep thinking this just has to work out, because Dad's the only one who didn't come out ahead from the time change. I mean, he did because he's alive. But it doesn't really count if we can't find him."

"What do you mean?"

"You told me how it was in that other world. Jo was your deputy, and now she's head of G.D. security. That's like, ten times more awesome. Fargo was just another researcher, and now he's head of Global Dynamics. Henry's girlfriend was dead, and I guess he couldn't get her back, but now he's married. I was autistic, and now I'm not. That counts for Mom and me both. Dr. Grant got to go to the future like he wanted, plus I guess he's going to marry my Mom, so he's lucky too. You're the only one who didn't get anything special, but that's okay because you were happy already. So if we just find Dad, that means everybody wins. It all makes sense."

"What do you mean, it makes sense?"

"I have this theory. You know I was exposed to the artifact. Well, Dad was too. While I was going through all that, I didn't think he got powers like me. Now I think he did, but he just hid it better. I think he fixed everything."

"Do you really think he could do that? I mean, the amount of complexity just boggles the mind."

"I know, but when the artifact was in my head... I can't even describe it. It laid everything wide open."

"Yeah, but in that case, why think small? Why not bring about world peace, or end hunger?"

"Maybe that can't happen for some reason. Maybe trying to do something big would bring about some other disaster. Jack, I know my Dad is controlling this. I just hope he included himself."

Jack's protests died on his tongue. He had once suspected Kevin of manipulating the timeline, based on nothing more than a stray remark and the knowledge that Kevin had been exposed to the Artifact. In Kevin's fantasy, his father was helping all his friends. Who was Jack to try to refute that?

He lay an arm around the Kevin's shoulder. "Well, whether he did or not, he needs our help," he said, "and I think you can contribute. Let's get started."


	12. Chapter 12

Nathan woke in the hospital again. Something was wrong, though. The room was too bare. The walls looked flat and textureless. The sheet felt wispy and insubstantial under his finger.

He was delusional, he decided. No, he was still displaced in time. He wondered if he would he stay in this state forever. But perhaps it hadn't been long. The mind distorted time under certain circumstances. Dreams that lasted only a few seconds could feel like they took an hour. Perhaps he was dying, and these were his last hallucinogenic thoughts.

"We have to stop meeting like this," Henry said, with a shadow of his old gentle warmth. But he didn't want to talk to shadow-Henry.

"I want to die," he said. "I want this to be over."

Alarm crossed Henry's face. He took Nathan's hand. Nathan could barely make out a sense of pressure. "Hey, hey, don't talk like that. You've been sick, that's all. A day or two of antibiotics—"

"I'm not suicidal. I was oversimplifying. I don't actually want to die, but since I am whether I want to or not, I would like the process to hurry itself up a little."

"Nathan, no, it's just a little fever..."

"Wishful thinking. If I'm going to hallucinate, I want to see Jack."

Nathan closed his eyes and concentrated hard. Jack didn't appear. But the voices came back.

_This is a waste of time. It would be safer to shut it all down and dispose of him._

_He is a brilliant scientist! I just need time to arrange more processing power._

_No. It's time to cash out our chips while we're ahead. With Barlowe out, this is too risky._

_We don't need Barlowe. I have the whole scenario backed up. I just need to get more disk space. Once I get the new drives networked, I can restore the full VR setting, and he'll put this down to a fever dream._

Proceed on the assumption that you are sane, he reminded himself, because you have nothing to lose by doing so, and potentially a great deal to gain. Something disrupted the system, and so his captors were covering up by sticking him in the hospital yet again. It showed a certain lack of imagination. Then again, a system disruption followed by limited processing power would have left them without many options.

Henry was saying something about bringing someone in for Nathan to talk to. A psychologist.

"Just bring me my work," he said. "Henry, that's all that's keeping me steady right now. I just need something to think about outside myself."

Before he got sick, he'd been working on a way to wake up. Except he hadn't actually been sick, he reminded himself. He had to keep his realities straight.

Mechanically, the device was fairly simple. They kept him in the infirmary. Nathan suspected that it was to conserve processing power. Henry's workshop was a complex location, and minimizing real estate would ease system demands. He waited until night shift, then slipped out of his room to scavenge equipment. No one noticed; the hospital wasn't fully staffed. He counted himself lucky that the simulation even bothered to include equipment not in active use. He couldn't afford to wait any longer. It was long past time to wake up.

#

Jack spent half of the next week trying to track down some stolen materials. Most of them weren't valuable, but one particular rare bit of tech was on loan from another lab, and the D.O.D. had started asking pointed questions about when they would give it back.

After a week of searching, Jack took Kevin out for a soda at Cafe Diem. He tried to draw Kevin out, asking if anything was bothering him. At first, his questions were subtle. As Kevin grew more evasive, Jack grew increasingly blunt. Finally, Jack said, "Kevin, it's over. I know you were the one to take the amplifier."

At first Kevin tried to deny it. But when Jack confronted him with the evidence, he switched to pleading.

"Jack, I didn't break anything! And I didn't steal it, I just borrowed it. I think I can find my Dad."

"Kevin, no. I know this is hard for you, but this isn't the way."

"But if you would just listen—"

"No."

Their conversation was drawing attention. Henry was the first to involve himself. "Jack, may I at least take a look at Kevin's work?" he asked.

"Henry, I can't condone—"

"Of course not. But would it do any harm for me to check? If Kevin is on to something, we can surely make use of it one way or another."

"Yeah, okay, fine. But when we leave here, we're going straight to the D.O.D."

Before Jack knew it, half the cafe was involved. Henry confirmed that Kevin's work was solid. Others volunteered to contribute the handful of missing components that Kevin hadn't managed to "borrow."

"Jack, we can have this up and running in an hour," Henry said. "Under the circumstances, can't we delay turning in the gear just a little while?"

Reluctantly, Jack nodded.

"Great! We need to bring the materials to Beacon Hill."

#

Jack hadn't counted on the size of the crowd. Nathan might not have been the most popular person in Eureka, but he was still one of them. People showed up one by one until it seemed that half the town clustered around Kevin and Henry.

Henry and Kevin had the gear about half-finished when the D.O.D. showed up in force. A truck holding twelve men in body armor with assault rifles pulled up. The men swarmed out and surrounded Henry. Senator Wen strolled out. Jack cut her off and began talking frantically.

"Senator, this isn't what it looks like. We, we need that gear for just a little while."

"The situation seems clear enough to me," she said. "Who was responsible?"

"That's not important," Jack said. "Look, we think we can find Dr. Stark!"

"I don't care what your motivation was, stealing equipment is completely unacceptable," Wen said. "Sheriff, I want a name."

Kevin pushed his way past Henry and said, "It was me. But I didn't steal! I was only borrowing it."

"Kevin, I told you—" Then Jack sighed. "Never mind. Senator Wen, here's our culprit. Not some criminal mastermind. He's, he's just a kid who's frantic to help his Dad. I know this is irregular, but in light of Kevin's age and family circumstances, I'm asking you to show leniency and understanding."

The senator frowned. "Do you know how much all this gear costs?"

"I can guess. But Kevin probably can't. He might be a physics genius, but he's still a thirteen year old boy. Cost analysis is a bit beyond his experience. But he says he didn't break anything, and I believe him. Please, Senator."

The crowd looked on expectantly. Jack saw just how much Wen wanted to refuse. But he'd pinned her down. If she denied them now, everyone would wonder why.

"How does this thing work?" she asked.

Kevin explained, "I can trace radiation from time-shifted particles. My Dad is infused with them, and they contaminate everything they touch. For example, I can tell that my Dad was in close contact with this thing." He pointed at the wire cap. "I used it to calibrate my equipment, and now I can trace where it's been. I'm hoping I can track it back, you know, the way you could use a Geiger counter to track the path of a radioactive device. I think I can at least get a direction. I'm almost ready to go."

"All right," she said. Jack watched as she pulled away and took out her phone. Her fingers moved deftly over the touch pad. Then he forced his attention back to Kevin.

Kevin pointed the probe straight up. "Okay, engage the electrodynamic coils," he said.

"Engaging."

The device thrummed. Jack could feel the crackle of static electricity building up on his skin, like the charge before a thunderstorm. "Maybe we should all step back a little," he said.

"Now we need to bring it level with the ground," Henry said. The platform creaked, but held solid as the device slowly swung down. "Readings are stable, so let's start the circuit."

Kevin and Henry started the process, and the device began to scan. "It will take thirty minutes to move in a full circle," Henry explained. "But remember, the probe has a limited range. We won't detect anything further away than, oh, about fifty miles."

The mood of the crowd was somber. As the probe slowly ground through its circuit, the mood of the crowd turned more and more somber. During the final minute, a hush fell. Jack watched the dial pass through the final few degrees, then return to the origin.

"Nothing," Henry said. "Kevin, I'm sorry."

"Pack it up," Wen said.

"No!" Kevin said. "Senator, can't I have the equipment for just one more week? Maybe I can find a way to amplify the probe! I know I can do better if I have more time!"

"No," Wen said firmly. "Kevin, you have no idea how lucky you are that I'm not pressing charges. I'll overlook your criminal behavior just this once given the circumstances, but this is over." She turned to her men. "Load up the gear."

Jack mouthed to Henry, stall a little longer.

"Let's load her up," Henry said. He turned the winch to lower the platform, but something gave way. Jack heard the shriek of metal on metal, and the probe toppled nose-first onto the ground. Outwardly, nothing broke, but Jack heard the slow tinkle of fragile interior components trickling through busted compartments. He winced.

"Um, how bad is that?" he asked.

"We can fix it!" Kevin said.

"I think not," Wen said icily. "Load it up. My people will handle any necessary repairs. We'll send you a bill."

But extracting the probe out of the muddy grass without doing further damage took another twenty minutes. By then, Jack's phone buzzed. He checked it briefly, then took out a pair of cuffs.

Holding them discreetly at his side, he walked casually up to Wen and snapped one on her wrist. "Senator Wen, you are charged with kidnapping, assault, illegal eavesdropping, with defrauding the Department of Defense, and possibly with other charges to be determined later. You have the right to remain silent..."

When he finished, she asked, "How?"

"Our team just broke into your safehouse. We have your people in custody. See, this device you've been watching for the past hour doesn't actually do anything. Nor did we use any stolen equipment to build it. We set you up when we planned it in Cafe Diem. Then we waited for you to contact your team. One text was all it took for us to get GPS coordinates for your base. Eureka tech doesn't need you to stay on the line. How did you know to pull out before our previous raid?"

"I'm not going to answer."

"Okay, I'll try. Pure, dumb luck. You started to suspect Barlowe's loyalty, so you cut her out and relocated. Turns out you were half right. She was wavering. She had less stomach for your methods once she saw them up close. But she probably wouldn't have turned against you if you hadn't dumped her. Once you cut her loose, we picked her up. Congratulations, Senator, you shot yourself in the foot."


	13. Chapter 13

In Jack's attempts to intimidate Senator Wen into a full confession, he left out one inconvenient detail. Nathan Stark was still missing.

Minutes before Jack's team showed up, Nathan triggered his alarm. The noise cut through the fog in his brain, cut through the weariness, and demanded action. He opened his eyes. It was a strange sensation, for in VR Eureka, his eyes were already open. For a second, he experienced a nauseating confusion in both vision and proprioception; part of him knew he stood upright and saw a lab, while another part knew he lay flat and saw a ceiling.

But the second reality won out. The lab faded. He sat, his head swimming, and pulled a needle from his arm. Then, he slowly and carefully lifted a wire frame free from his skull. Thankfully nothing had been hardwired in.

He stood. His legs buckled beneath him, and he collapsed back into the bed. He stood again, more carefully. His muscles were weak from disuse, but once he got some blood flowing, he should be able to function. His makeshift infirmary was in what looked suspiciously like a bedroom. He saw two doors, so he picked one at random and eased it open. It led to a half-bath. The bathroom had an old fashioned screen window, which let in cool night air. Outside, he saw moonlight on thick wet grass, and trees in the distance.

He was in some old farmhouse.

He could hear footsteps outside the door. Nathan knew he had no strength to wrestle with his captors. Nor did he have the strength to go leaping out a window and dashing into the forest at night, but it wasn't in his nature to give up. He wrestled the window screen up, and awkwardly began squirming through it.

To his astonishment, a sleek black nose shimmered and became visible before he made it out.

"Martha?" he asked.

The machine hummed. Martha, Global Dynamic's sleek black drone with a mind of her own, was here to help.

He grabbed ahold of Martha's wings and let her pull him forward. If this were a Disney cartoon, he'd have swung himself on top of her and gone riding off as if she were a flying carpet. But in fact, her slick surface and his own lack of muscle tone didn't even let him maintain his grip long enough to help himself to the ground. He fell.

He managed to roll on the grass. Pain in his ribs shot through him. Evidently his captors hadn't bothered to heal them. He heard shots. Martha, firing through the window. He clambered to his feet and made his way toward the cover of the trees. If Martha was here, help would come in time. He just had to stay free until someone found him.

#

"This sucks," Jack said. "It's over. We have five of the Consortium team in custody. We have Barlowe, and she's agreed to give evidence. Two more have made partial confessions. We have a solid case against Senator Wen. But one lone idiot with a gun is wandering the woods in the dark, and Nathan's out there with him."

"Martha did her best," Fargo said defensively. "She's not programmed to deal with hostage situations."

"I'm not blaming Martha, but this situation is a recipe for disaster. If those two cross paths, Nathan could end up shot just from their twitchy nerves. Or our straggler might mistakenly think that getting rid of him will leave us with no case."

A shot rang out.

"OK," Jack said. "We have live fire. I'm going in. Andy, with me."

The others nodded. Andy and Jack set off. The thick dew-laden lawn around the farmhouse rapidly gave way to scrubby brush. Jack could see little in the dim light, but Andy spotted where the brush was trampled down. Once the two of them forced their way past the boundary between lawn and forest, the thick trees shaded out the smaller plants and the land grew easier to navigate. The ground was wet and soft with the thick detritus of fallen needles, except where it grew thin and rocky. The hill sloped sharply.

Andy took the lead. Jack moved as fast as he dared. He felt his ankle try to twist under him, and steadied himself against a tree. Balance regained, he headed for the noise as fast as he could. He didn't try for quiet; he wouldn't be able to manage it in the dark. Instead he took the direct approach.

"This is Jack Carter of the U.S. Marshals," he called out loudly. "I have a warrant for your arrest. Your compatriots have already surrendered. You are surrounded and outgunned. Turn yourself in, and I'll see that you are treated fairly."

"I have a hostage," a man's voice called back. "I want passage out of here."

Andy said very quietly, "My night vision is better than yours. If you can keep him talking, I can approach quietly. I may be able to take him down safely."

"OK, but no sudden moves if it puts Stark at risk," Jack said. Louder, Jack called out, "Who's your hostage?"

"You know who. Don't play dumb."

"Okay, let me put it another way. How do I know you're not lying?"

"Say something! Speak up and let him know you're here!"

Jack heard the sharp sound of someone being struck, and tamped back rage.

"Abusing your hostage is not the way to earn good will," he yelled.

"Screw you! I want a car and a plane ticket out of here, and if I don't get it, I'll shoot him!"

"All right, all right, calm down and we'll discuss it. What's your name?"

Jack kept him talking. Then he heard sounds of a scuffle, and another two gun shots. He raced toward the noise.

Nathan held the gun, pointed at another man who lay groaning in the pine needles. Andy had his palms pressed firmly against the man's side.

"Wasn't me, boss!" Andy said quickly. "Dr. Stark got the gun away from him. I think he'll live, if I can get him to a hospital quick enough."

"Nathan, it's good to see you. You want to give me the gun now?"

"No," Nathan said, and trained the gun straight on the center of Jack's chest.

"Hey, easy," he said. "Easy."

"Leave me be," Nathan said. "I'm not going back in."

Out of the corner of his eye, Jack saw Andy quietly let go of the injured man. Andy shifted his weight, getting ready to move fast. Jack kept his gaze fixed on Nathan's face. He could see very little by moonlight, and Nathan kept his voice controlled, as he so often did in emergencies. In spite of this, Jack could see the strain in the way his hand trembled and in the slump of his shoulders.

"Yeah, okay. Going in where?"

"The VR world. Or am I still in it? This could be another level, a trick to make me think I'm out when I'm not."

"Nathan, I know this is a lot to take in. But the Consortium kidnapped you and put you in a virtual world, and—"

"I know. I'm not going back."

"Yeah, good, but I'm part of the rescue party, okay?"

"You're not you. You're different."

"Yeah, I know. I, I shouldn't have dumped half the story on you when you were in the hospital. I just, I didn't want to, to lie to you, okay? I didn't want to lie."

"You wanted the secret of time travel."

"No, no I didn't. See, I already have it. Well, most of it. I still remember. Because last time, it was me. I mean, in the time loop. You got me out of it, except you died. But I remember the equation, because Leo taught me to, to sing it. Um." Jack began singing.

"That makes no sense at all," Nathan said, but his tone was different. Less controlled, shaky with relief and a hint of humor. "Only you. No simulation could possibly capture that level of absurdity." Nathan engaged the safety and handed him the gun.

Jack took it, checked the safety, then stepped forward to offer Nathan his arm. Nathan flinched away, then stumbled and had to lean against a tree. Jack stayed close, but didn't touch him. He didn't want to spook him.

"Andy, can you get the injured man back safely?" he asked.

"Sure thing, boss."

"OK, go. Nathan and I will follow in a bit, all right?"

"You got it. I'll be back in a flash." Andy lifted the injured man easily and walked away.

#

"Is this real?" Nathan asked. Nathan knew even as he asked that it was a foolish question.

"Yes," Jack said firmly. "I know this is a lot to take in, but you've obviously figured a lot of it out on your own. How did you get out?"

"That's not your business." He had no intention of giving away his escape method."

"Hey," Jack said. "Hey, take a breath, okay?"

"I've provisionally accepted this as real. It fits the data better. At least I think it does. The sensory information is vivid. But it was vivid in the first scenario, too. I can't think straight. My head hurt. I thought my head would stop hurting if I woke up." Nathan had begun breathing faster and faster, until every inhalation came in a ragged whistling gasp.

"Hey," Jack said. "Hey." He put a hand on Nathan's shoulder. Nathan flinched from it, but Jack kept it there, warm and steady. Jack continued, "Let me try something, okay? Just let it go for a minute. For one minute, okay? Don't worry about if this is real, just let me try it."

While he spoke, he brought both hands up and laced his fingers on Nathan's temples. "Breathe deeply," Jack said. He began to gently massage them. "If the VR device made your head hurt, it's gonna take a little bit to ease up, right? A stress headache doesn't go away the instant the stress does, and this is probably no different. But try to relax for a minute."

His hands felt so good. Warm and steady. This wasn't the right Jack. This was Time Traveller Jack, who was different from VR Jack, who was in turn different from Real Jack. But it felt real. Nathan felt the panic ease up. He had craved this. No one had touched him kindly in far too long.

"Better?"

"Yeah. Sorry. Asking you if this is real is a stupid question, since it's not like I can trust your answer. In fact, if you were a fully fleshed out A.I., you might not know yourself."

"Um, yeah. Well. Later for that. Are you cold?"

"A bit."

"Okay, I'm gonna give you my jacket, and I'm gonna sit behind you. We'll share body heat for a minute until Andy gets back."

Jack put his back against a tree, pulled his jacket around Nathan's shoulders, then pulled Nathan close. Nathan tensed for a second, but then leaned into the touch.

"I won't apologize for doubting reality," Nathan said. "I have reason."

"Yeah, no, of course. I'm just, I'm sorry you're going through this. I wish I could help. But in a way, it's like I'm not even here for you, since you don't know if I'm real."

"You are helping. This is helping. Jack... you were right. I needed to let go of it, just for a minute. But I also need to understand. Please tell me about going to 1947. Did that actually happen?"

Nathan hadn't counted on how much the warmth of Jack's body would relax him, or how much the brief adrenalin rush would leave him exhausted. He meant to listen, but Jack's steady voice lulled him to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the story will be going up today. Thanks to all who gave kudos/comments, and special thanks to Tarlan, who posted something encouraging every single time I made an update. Thanks Tarlan, I loved knowing that someone was reading this as fast as I posted it :)

Nathan's hands felt like ice, and he was too thin. Still, he felt reassuringly solid in Jack's arms. Jack held him close for the next twenty minutes. Then he heard Andy's footsteps approaching. He gently shook Nathan's shoulder to wake him. Nathan went rigid in his arms, then relaxed.

"Easy," Jack said quietly. "It's just Andy. We're safe. He'll guide us back to the others."

Nathan's legs were still shaky, so Jack took one arm and Andy took the other, and they supported him back to the run down old farm house. He stayed very quiet while Allison examined him.

"You're a little dehydrated and your ribs are still only half healed, but your heart rate is steady. We'll get you a more thorough exam back at Global," she said.

"No! I mean, I just want to go home."

Awkward silence followed that statement. Nathan, perhaps belatedly realizing that he had no home to go to, looked at Jack. "You... I don't want to impose..."

"Of course you're welcome to stay with me, once you get checked out," Jack said firmly.

Allison said, " Nathan, is it all right if I discuss your medical care with Jack?"

Nathan nodded. Allison drew Jack away and told him, "Physically, he's malnourished, dehydrated, and he's lost some muscle tone, but he doesn't actually need to be in a hospital. I'm more worried about his psychological health right now, Jack. He's not making eye contact, he flinches whenever anyone tries to touch him, and he reacted badly to the suggestion of the infirmary. He needs to be someplace he feels safe. Actively reaching out to you is a good sign, and something to encourage."

"He's more than welcome to stay with me," Jack said. "I just didn't want to undermine you if he needed to be checked in."

"I appreciate that." Allison smiled, but it was a bittersweet smile. "Bring him in for a full physical tomorrow. Oh, and suggest that he seek counseling for PTSD, but don't pressure him or he'll just get stubborn. Jack, take care of him for me. I can't help him right now. I can see how uncomfortable he is around me. And the truth is, being around him is hard."

"Yeah, but you guys were so good together. And, and I know I promised not to badmouth Trevor anymore, but this isn't about him. This is just me, remembering how happy you were."

She smiled wistfully. "Jack, I've lost him twice now. Once to divorce, once to death. I can't face going through that again. I think we just aren't meant to be, and besides, I have Trevor now. Just take good care of him for me, please."

"He asked me that once, for your sake," Jack said wistfully. "I'll do my best."

Feeling Nathan relax under his hands had been a powerful experience. Nathan was not one to display vulnerability if he could possibly avoid it. Jack wasn't sure what his alternate self had done to earn such trust. But he was sure that he didn't want to let Nathan down. He regretted now that he had let his interest in Allison come between him and his own world's version of Nathan. Though that hadn't been the only thing they'd butted heads about, he remembered. Stifling a smile, he also remembered one of their sillier arguments over the proper use of the terms magma and lava.

It was funny. One of the things that had bugged him about Nathan was that Nathan used to flirt with him. Jack always thought that he did it just to make Jack squirm. He could never quite bring himself to tell Nathan to knock it off, though he knew Nathan would stop if asked. For as much as they competed with each other, they had their own code. Neither of them ever descended into genuinely cruel behavior.

But asking Nathan to stop would mean admitting (at least to himself) that he did in fact find Nathan attractive. He'd always had a thing for smart, sexy, and confident, and Nathan was all those things with a core of decency that Jack slowly came to see. It had hurt to know that Nathan's teasing was just teasing.

But now he wondered. Kevin had said that Nathan and Jack were close. Maybe in this world, things were different. This wasn't the time to fantasize, though. His role was to give Nathan a safe space to recover in.

#

Jack's plate held scrambled eggs with pepper jack cheese and a side of sausage. To be sure, it was low fat sausage, but at least it was sausage. Nathan's plate held an egg white omelet with kale.

"You know, sausage isn't actually poison," he pointed out. "Neither are egg yolks. S.A.R.A.H., have mercy on the poor guy. Or I will, if you won't. Nathan, have a sausage."

"I enjoy S.A.R.A.H.'s meals," Nathan said, and damned if his eyes didn't hide a flicker of humor.

"Unlike you, Dr. Stark understands the importance of eating a healthy diet," S.A.R.A.H. said.

"Yeah, but all things in moderation, right? I mean, come on, you've been measuring out the guy's every bite. Nathan, you know you actually have a say in what you eat, don't you?"

"Sheriff Carter, please do not attempt to pervert Dr. Stark's currently healthy eating patterns. I have resigned myself to feeding you meals which do not conform to current health guidelines, because if I don't, you merely supplement your diet at Cafe Diem. But Dr. Stark, fortunately, eats what I provide."

"It's no burden, S.A.R.A.H.. You're a fine cook."

"Oh come on! Now you're just trying to make me look bad!"

"Sheriff, are you suggesting that Dr. Stark's compliment could not have been sincere?"

"Oh, S.A.R.A.H., no, don't do this. Don't sulk! Come on! I was just trying to give the guy a sausage."

Nathan made a muffled choking noise. When Jack looked over, his eyes were alight with humor. Meanwhile, S.A.R.A.H. continued in an injured tone, "I merely want you to be with me as long as possible, Sheriff. A healthy diet can contribute to longevity. I don't want to part with you sooner than I must."

"Aw, S.A.R.A.H., don't you think that's a little melodramatic? Not to mention one hell of a guilt trip?" Jack poked at his last sausage, and found he couldn't quite persuade himself to eat it. "If you keep this up, you'll exceed Zoe on the manipulation scale," he muttered.

Nathan took his plate. "I'm afraid your sausage will have to go to waste," he said with a completely straight face.

#

Later, as they sat in the living room, Jack said quietly, "It just seems like you aren't letting up on yourself lately."

Once Jack got him home, Nathan had insisted on showering, then collapsed and slept for the next fourteen hours. When he woke, he seemed significantly calmer than he had in the woods, but he was still very subdued. Jack fed him toast and orange juice and tentatively brought up counseling. Somewhat to his surprise, Nathan had immediately agreed.

"I know I'll need to do it," he said. "I'd like to wait a day or two, though. I... it's sort of a catch 22. If I go in now, I'll just spend all session afraid of being manipulated."

"Yeah," Jack said, his throat tight. "A day or two, sure."

He'd cooperated with the medical exam, which confirmed Allison's initial assessment. Three days later, Jack broached therapy again. This time Nathan voluntarily made an appointment. Jack drove him. The session was only thirty minutes, but Nathan came out looking wrung out.

"Everything okay?" Jack asked.

"Yeah. Actually, it helped."

"Do things... do they seem more real?"

"We discussed that. Dr. Esteban doesn't feel that needs to be a focus of therapy at this time. She thinks some of my doubts will spontaneously resolve over time, and others I'll be able to deal with once I'm up to going over the data. We... I actually had some issues prior to all this."

Nathan looked away as though he regretted admitting that. Jack said, "If it helps, that's fantastic. Would you like me to keep driving you?"

"Yeah," Nathan said, as though startled by the offer. "Actually, yes. Thank you."

As his physical strength returned, his mood brightened. But as soon as he was steady on his feet, Nathan began approaching recovery as though he would be graded on it. He ate everything S.A.R.A.H. offered him, even if he had no appetite. Jack had see him make it halfway through a meal, set the plate aside, then stubbornly return to it half an hour later. He wore a heart rate monitor to make sure he didn't stress his heart while exercising. So long as he didn't trip the monitor, he pushed himself to the limit. He kept precise records of his exercise sessions, heart rate, and who knows what else. Jack saw him log it all on a spreadsheet.

He had the spreadsheet open now, and was logging calories consumed. Jack said, "I mean, you've got everything numbered and tabulated and graphed... do you really need to do that? You know it's okay to just... be, don't you?"

Nathan said almost shyly, "The spreadsheet helps, though. It's hard not to push myself to the point where it's destructive. Or, if I don't, it's hard not to feel guilty about being lazy. And I like seeing my progress. It's encouraging, and it helps me keep my expectations realistic."

Jack hadn't thought of it in those terms. Nathan's behavior had seemed odd to him, but then he stopped and thought. Nathan had always been a contradictory combination of rigid precision and bold risk taking. Too bold, Jack sometimes thought, but over time he'd come to realize that Nathan didn't actually have full veto power over every runaway experiment that someone at Global performed.

"You're being a scientist," he said, grinning. "Yeah, okay, I get it. You honestly enjoy keeping all these records?"

"It's relaxing. All this is second nature to me by now."

"Jeez, can you handle my record keeping too? You know, since you like it so much?"

Nathan chuckled. "You keep perfectly fine records of the things you want records of, Jack. You're just stubborn."

"Yeah, maybe. But some of the stuff I have to file..."

"You have test anxiety, and paperwork reminds you of being tested."

"Jeez, I wonder why. And it's not like living in a town full of geniuses didn't make it worse."

"I doubt that your intellect has anything to do with it. All human ability is distributed along a spectrum. People with far less intelligence than you accept their place on the spectrum, and are willing to undergo being tested without any specific anxiety. But standardized testing rewards linear, logical thought far more than the type of intuitive connections you excel at making. You routinely test out below your ability level, and are judged inadequate for tasks you know you can do well. It's no wonder that you find the process off-putting."

That floored Jack. He made no answer, and Nathan looked at him with something like concern.

"Jack?"

"I just, I just didn't expect to hear that. From you. Um. Yeah. I thought you thought I was an idiot."

"Why would I think that? What you do is remarkable. The whole town relies on you."

"Uh... thanks. Hearing that means a lot to me."


	15. Chapter 15

Nathan opened the door to Cafe Diem, nodded at Vincent, and seated himself in the far corner. This was his first trip into town since being rescued, and he couldn't help but be nervous. He knew he shouldn't put it off any longer though.

He saw people look over and then glance away, heard conversations hush. Then, somewhat to his surprise, Dr. Garun walked over and offered his hand.

"It's good to have you back," he said.

Nathan accepted his hand. The cynical part of his brain was busy pointing out that Dr. Garun hadn't had one word to say when Nathan had been accused of criminal behavior, but the more rational part pointed out that he had in fact looked guilty. Had, by some standards, actually been guilty. Besides, Nathan had done some soul searching over the past couple of weeks, and he had admitted to himself just how much he wanted the respect of his compatriots.

"Thank you," Nathan said, and offered his hand. He didn't expect any more than that, but to his surprise, Dr. Garun continued, "I should have known there was more to what happened two years ago than what we knew. I'm sorry I didn't stick by you back then."

Men of Dr. Garun's standing did not admit to fault easily. It took Nathan a moment to find his voice. "Thank you, Eric," he said. "I don't fault you or anyone else, but thank you for saying it."

That broke the tide. One by one, every single person in the cafe came forward and offered their hand. No one else formally apologized, but even so, the flood of goodwill very nearly broke something in him. By the time everyone took their seats, Nathan was close to tears.

Vincent was last. As one of the few who had openly expressed their faith in him two years ago, Vincent merely said, "It's so good to see you again, Dr. Stark. May I take your order?"

He couldn't wrap his mind around the question. Vincent smiled at him and said kindly, "I'll just bring you something, all right?"

He nodded. Then Allison Blake walked in the door. He watched her look around for an empty table, and so he knew the exact moment when she spotted him. Her eyes widened, she hesitated, but then she walked over and sat across from him.

"Nathan, it's good to see you up and about," she said. "Can we talk?"

She hadn't spoken to him so kindly since before their divorce. He remembered Jack saying, she should be with you, and he swallowed hard. "That would be good," he said.

"I thought maybe we could clear the air. I know things happened differently between us in this timeline. In my time, you and I had our issues, but I can't imagine what could have gone so wrong between us that you didn't want me to come visit you in the hospital. And when we found you... it hurt to see you pull away from me like that. I just wanted to get some sort of understanding, and see if we could maybe make peace."

What he had to say next was not easy. "I know why things were different," he said. The words came hard, as though some physical obstruction in his throat sat in their way. "At least, I know the key point of divergence. I don't know what all led to that point. But I made the choice. I didn't tell you that what was wrong with Kevin. I never even considered it. You knew he was sick, and you even came to me for help, but I decided not to risk telling you that I was breaking the law. I thought I could handle it alone. And then his life ended up at risk. You never forgave me, and you never trusted me with him again. I think... you really believed I was using him. That I cared more about exploiting the Akashic field created by the Artifact than about his life."

She lay a hand on his. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that alone."

"It's not your fault. Jack told me that in the other timeline, we remarried."

Her face grew somber. "Yes, we did, but Nathan, it can't be like that here."

"No, no," he said hastily. "That wasn't a proposition. I just meant that I have solid proof that if I had trusted you, you would have come through. I just wasn't able to make that leap of faith. I'm sorry."

"Well, this me knows with equal certainty that you would never do anything to hurt Kevin. It's all right, Nathan."

The wave of relief was overpowering. He felt physically lighter, almost to the point of dizziness. In his fantasies, Allison had apologized for not trusting him. He had never imagined the reverse. All along, he had denied his own part in what happened. Now he realized he had needed to offer an apology even more than he had needed to receive one. And even his most private fantasies had never imagined Allison offering him this much genuine warmth. He felt the long-festering pain of their divorce ease and settle into an old ache, easily borne.

"Nathan, you look exhausted, are you all right?" she asked.

He nodded. "Just a bit tired."

"Well, you take care of yourself, all right? Is there anything I can do to make things easier?"

"Actually, yes. I wanted to talk to you about custody arrangements. Before all this, I wasn't seeing much of Kevin."

She smiled wistfully. "Having him is so new that it's hard for me to let go even a little. But Kevin adores you, and I won't stand in the way of that. He also needs a mentor who understands physics and can give him a little guidance. I assume you'd like to see Jenna too?"

Jenna.

"You forgot her, didn't you?" Allison's face was alight with humor.

"I keep overlooking the obvious," he admitted. He laughed, but it came out shaky. The lapse, plus the thought of parenting a whole new child, left him rattled.

"Hey, it's all right. Don't worry about Jenna. I know you do better with older children, but she's pretty easygoing, and Kevin will help you with her. Jack knows her too. We'll work something out later on. Right now, why don't you let me run you back to Jack's place before you fall over?"

Vincent had already anticipated this, and stood nearby holding food packaged to go. "It's Avgolemono soup with pita bread, and baklava with orange blossom honey for dessert," Vincent said. "I thought you might like something light."

He nodded in gratitude and let Allison take him home.

#

"Zane and I put together a pretty robust scenario," Fargo said. "Our story is that Barlowe kidnapped you when you first disappeared. She's been holding you all this time in VR Eureka. But it was a pipe dream on her part—your work ended up being useless because you lacked the capacity to properly test it. She eventually involved Senator Wen in order to get access to better VR tech."

Jack added, "Senator Wen could refute this, but I've worked out an arrangement where we cast her in the role of your rescuer. Our story is that she only got involved with the Consortium in order to expose it." 

"Thank you," Nathan said. He couldn't bring himself to look at Fargo. 

"You know, Fargo did a lot to help get you back," Jack said. "Both when you were spread across the timelines, and when you were in the hands of the consortium. I know you two have had some issues in the past, but things are different now. Maybe you two can start over?"

"That's fair," Nathan said, but the words came hard.

"Thank you," Fargo said earnestly, "But it's all right. Jack, let it go. The Dr. Stark I worked for believed in me back before I believed in myself. But now, I don't need to be an obligation. I don't want pressure to be my friend to be something you have to carry. That said, I'm glad to help however I can."

Nathan murmured something noncommittal. Fargo excused himself. Once he left, Jack turned to him and said, "When you know, when you really know what role you played in his life, you are going to be so proud."

"That wasn't me," Nathan said ruefully.

"Don't care."

"So I get all the credit for the other Nathan's good deeds?" he asked.

"Seems fair, since you got nothing but crap for your own," Jack said.

"Not anymore. Life has turned around pretty nicely."


	16. Chapter 16

S.A.R.A.H. approved of Nathan Stark as a guest. He ate her food, he included her in conversations, and he made Jack happy. Jack himself probably wasn't entirely aware of this. One of the ironies of happiness, S.A.R.A.H. realized, was that happiness often occurred at times when one's attention was drawn outward. In Jack's case, he spent more time thinking of Nathan's health than of his own mood. But S.A.R.A.H. kept a close watch, and she knew quite well that she had never seen him smile so much.

As Nathan's health improved, the mood between Nathan and Jack changed. S.A.R.A.H. saw more shyly awkward glances, more almost-touches followed by drawing away, more self-conscious silences. She also saw more whole-hearted laughter and more intimate conversations. Jack shared memories and insights that S.A.R.A.H. had never heard him speak of to anyone else.

Thus S.A.R.A.H. was completely unprepared when Nathan said one morning, "It's time for me to move into my own place. Fargo reserved an apartment for me."

Jack's eyes crinkled up in the forlorn expression he got when something hurt and he didn't want to show it. S.A.R.A.H. felt more than a little hurt herself. Though she probably should have let Jack handle things, she could not help herself.

"Is something wrong, Dr. Stark?" she asked. "I thought you were happy here."

"I am," he immediately said. "But Zoe will be back in town for the summer, and I don't want to intrude. Don't worry, S.A.R.A.H., you'll still see plenty of me. That is, assuming I'm welcome?"

The last was directed at Jack, who quickly answered. "Yeah, yeah, absolutely! Of course. I just, I mean, yeah of course. Anytime."

"Good. In that case, maybe you'll let me take you out to dinner?"

"Um, yeah, sure."

"Great! I'll pick you up Thursday at 7 P.M. It's the least I can do to show my appreciation. Trust me Jack, I really do appreciate everything you've done for me in the past few weeks."

"Yeah, anytime. Well, um, hopefully never again, cause, you know..."

"Hopefully we've done our time when it comes to time travel."

S.A.R.A.H. saw their eyes meet. Jack laughed out loud. Nathan tended to show his amusement in subtler ways, but his eyes crinkled and he smirked. Jack blushed, looked away, looked back, saw Nathan looking, which startled Nathan into looking away himself. In the end, neither of them could quite look at the other, yet both of them appeared almost giddy with pleasure. S.A.R.A.H. did not understand it. She had been certain that this behavior was a prelude to mating. And yet, Nathan was leaving.

"If you remained here, I could prepare dinner for you both," she pointed out.

"I'll catch up with you when I pick up Jack," Nathan said firmly. She had no choice but to accept.

#

Zoe's arrival brightened S.A.R.A.H.'s mood. S.A.R.A.H. missed Zoe almost as much as Jack did. Jack caught her up on events over dinner. S.A.R.A.H. was gratified to notice the flattering terms he used to describe Nathan. 

The follwing afternoon, Kevin dropped by while Jack was out. "Do you know why my Dad is moving out?" he asked. "I thought he liked it here."

"I did too," S.A.R.A.H. said. "I wish I knew, Kevin. I was hoping you could tell me."

"I thought he liked Jack," Kevin said. "You know... _like_ liked him."

Zoe gave Kevin a conspiratorial grin. "So you see it too," she said. "You know, if our dads get together, I'll be your big sister. That means I get to boss you around."

"No way!" he protested, but he was grinning. "Anyway, I guess it's not going to happen."

"Oh, trust me Kevin, this is a step forward."

"Why?"

"You're young. You've never dated. But trust me, when you're attracted to someone, you don't want to be their charity case. You don't want to be stuck with them in a bad situation if things don't work out. You don't want to worry that they're only picking you because you're conveniently available. And most of all, you want them to be impressed with you, not trying to mother you."

"So you mean this is a good thing?" Kevin said.

"You bet. My dad would never make a move while Nathan was his guest. And your dad has too much pride to make a pass at someone he feels indebted to."

"So they still have a chance. Cool!"

"This conversation has done much to encourage me," S.A.R.A.H. said. "It is also heartening to know that this match has the approval of the children. Jenna has yet to voice an opinion, but I cannot imagine her objecting, as she loves everyone."

"Just stay cool," Zoe advised. "Both of you, just be careful not to let them know we're rooting for this. It might freak them out."

"Many species require privacy in order to mate successfully," S.A.R.A.H. said, and couldn't understand why Zoe and Kevin both started snickering.

#

Jack dithered over his choice of clothing. Nathan's invitation was almost certainly a thank you, not a date, so dressing up wasn't appropriate. But on the other hand, he couldn't quite bring himself to put on his usual t-shirt and jeans.

"The pale blue shirt brings out your eyes," S.A.R.A.H. observed.

"Thank you S.A.R.A.H., but I didn't ask," he groused. He put the blue shirt on anyway.

Nathan showed up at 7 P.M. To Jack's relief, he hadn't put on a suit. He dressed much the same as when he'd been living with Jack: button down shirt and slacks, no tie. That was about as informal as Nathan ever got. He looked good. Actually, he looked fantastic. He walked with his old confident stride, met Jack's eye with no hesitation, and gave that confident, almost smug grin that Jack remembered from the old Nathan. Jack hadn't even realized he missed that grin. His mouth went a trifle dry.

"Looking good, Jack," Nathan said cheerfully.

"Um."

Nathan didn't give him a chance to trip over his own tongue though; he greeted S.A.R.A.H., who began quizzing him on the details of his place. S.A.R.A.H. repeatedly pointed out the superiority of her own amenities, until Jack cut her off.

"S.A.R.A.H., enough. I'm sure Nathan moving out wasn't meant as an insult to you. I'll see you later."

"What time will you be home, Sheriff?"

"S.A.R.A.H., I'm a little old for a curfew. And I thought you and I had moved past the days when you locked me out over being a little late."

"I suppose I can unlock the door regardless of the hour," S.A.R.A.H. said in a distinctly sulky tone. Nathan was keeping his face straight with visible effort. Jack sighed, but deep down he didn't mind seeing the guy smiling. He looked good when he smiled.

#

"Burger and fries, Vincent," Jack said.

Vincent sighed, but turned to Nathan. "And for you, Dr. Stark?"

"Burger and fries," Nathan said, his eyes glinting with that streak of wicked humor Jack had missed so much.

"But, but, you must be joking! The special tonight is—"

"Burger and fries. My mind is made up."

Vincent turned to glare at Jack. "It's bad enough that you have the taste buds of a heathen, but now you've infected him! You are a terrible influence!"

"Now, now, none of that. Jack had nothing to do with this. Surely you don't think I'm so weak willed that I can't decide for myself what I want to eat?"

Vincent sputtered denials, then appeared to realize he was being teased. "All right, I'll bring you your burger if you're absolutely certain, but at least let me start you out with an appetizer. Perhaps some of the Copper River salmon served on bruschetta? Or the arugula salad with macerated pears, blue cheese, walnuts, and figs? Or—"

Nathan shook his head. "Relationships are about new experiences, Vincent, and I intend to embrace this one."

"That's a new experience?" Jack said. "Come on, Nathan, even you could hardly avoid America's most common meal."

"You'd be surprised what I've managed to avoid in life. That said, I have had a burger before. The new part is ordering one in front of a date that I want to impress."

"Um... it's a date?" Jack said. He could feel a big grin spreading across his face.

"Did I not make that clear? You dressed for it."

"Well. Um. I just, I didn't, I... you're trying to impress me?"

"Maybe. Is it working?" Nathan's smug grin said the guy was fairly certain of the answer. Jack had definitely missed that grin.

"Maybe. I'll let you know."

Vincent had at some point given up and quietly retreated.

#

Dinner went well. Actually, it went better than well. Nathan took charge of the conversation, and before long had Jack telling embarrassing stories of his training days. Nathan shared stories of his own youth, often involving experiments gone awry or dates gone bad. Jack couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so much.

The burger and fries were outstanding. Jack had to give it to Vincent; he might complain, but he made a great burger. The truth was, if Vincent had cared less, Jack would have experimented more. But he didn't like being pressured to be something he was not, not even over a small matter like what he ate. It had touched him more than he liked to show to have Nathan match Jack's order instead of pressuring Jack to try something exotic.

Perhaps because of that, when Vincent came back and asked if they would like dessert, Jack rapidly traded glances with Nathan, then said, "Go nuts Vince. Bring us whatever you feel like making."

Jack grinned at the look of astonishment on Vincent's face. Then his grin faltered as Vincent began visibly blinking back tears.

"Hey, what's wrong? Vince?"

"It's nothing, Sheriff. It's just, this is the first time since you came to Eureka that you let me choose your order." Vincent broke out into a beaming smile, blotted his eyes, and made off to the kitchen.

"Wow," Jack said. "I almost wish I'd indulged him earlier."

"Nah, it's good for him. Every artist needs a challenge."

Dessert was tasty enough. It involved lavender blossoms, honey, vanilla ice cream, phyllo dough, and Marscapone cheese. Jack had a hard time paying the concoction much mind though. Nathan kept staring intently at him every time he picked up a fork.

"What?" Jack asked.

"Just admiring the view."

Neither of them were in the mood to end the night. Jack suggested a stroll around the block. The tone shifted from laughter to something quieter, but with a charge to it. The night air felt cool and refreshing, and although Jack was no astronomer, he still admired the stars.

But Nathan's confidence seemed to be leaking away. He looked everywhere but at Jack. His posture changed; his shoulders drawing inward and his steps growing slower. When they completed the circuit, Nathan took Jack's hand. The warmth of it sent an electric charge that left behind that flutter in the stomach that preceded the best sort of thrill. Nathan pulled him closer; Jack put up a hand and rested it on his chest. He hated what he was about to say next.

"Do you believe this is real?" he asked.

"All reality is provisional," Nathan said. "I can't pretend I don't wonder. This... it comes close enough to my fantasies that it does trigger that fear. But you're a little different than the other Jack, and that helps."

"But it's not enough?"

"A sufficiently clever V.R. model might introduce a storyline involving an alternate timeline in order to deliberately depart from my memories and thus be free of the impossible task of matching every detail. So no, it's not enough. Jack, if you're waiting for me to be certain, I may never be. You'll have to ask yourself if you can accept those doubts."

"This isn't a rejection," Jack said firmly. "I'm asking for your sake. I hate that you carry this burden. I didn't ask you for details before because I'm not your therapist. But before we go further... can you tell me what helps?"

"Details," Nathan said immediately. "All the little things that don't feel as if they flow from my own imagination. Your stammer is more pronounced."

"I, I don't, I don't have, yeah, I guess I do." Jack chuckled self-consciously, half pleased at the chance to lighten the mood, half genuinely embarrassed. "But only when I'm nervous, or when I'm trying to wrap my head around impossible concepts, which is like, every day around here."

"You stammer when the thoughts in your head outrace your tongue, which is very common, and of no importance except in that I like it because it helps me stay grounded in this reality," Nathan said firmly. "And for the record, the other Jack stammered too. You do it slightly more, and I find it endearing."

"I, I should probably feel patronized, but I don't think I care," Jack said. "What else?"

"My subjective perception of my body matches objective measurements. In the V.R. world I felt tired all the time, for no reason. I think some of that was cognitive fatigue stemming from my brain's attempt to process the V.R. feed, and the rest was a subconscious perception of my body's muscle atrophy. In general, feeling healthy reduces anxiety, and reduced anxiety makes me dwell less on my fears."

The urge to pull him into a hug was very strong, but Jack's instincts told him to wait.

"Jack, you say this isn't rejection. But what if this is the best I can offer?"

"Then we'll reassess things," Jack said. He honestly wasn't certain if he could face a relationship with a person who doubted his existence. "But I know this will mean so much more to us both if you know that I am real."

"Will you wait?"

Jack nodded.

"How long?" Nathan asked, then quickly added, "Don't say forever, or as long as it takes. I know that's the traditionally romantic answer. But it's not one that will be useful to me."

Jack thought briefly, and tried to pick an honest and realistic answer.

"A year," he said.

A slow grin spread across Nathan's face. "A year? Honestly?"

"Yeah, um, that's reasonable, isn't it?"

"I hate to admit it, but I think you're right. There's... something I've been putting off dealing with. It won't take me a year."

"Okay," Jack said, and found he was grinning. Somewhere along the line, Nathan had found his confidence again, and the effect was contagious. "So... um. I should probably wait. But I have to tell you, it's selfish of me, and I really am sorry you're going through this, but it has still been one of the best nights of my life. And I would like a kiss."

Nathan's eyes went dark, and he gave Jack a little smile. "Would you now."

"Um. Yeah. If that's okay."

Nathan's hand gripped his, warm and vital, and then Nathan pulled him forward and was kissing him thoroughly; hot, wet, and relentless. Jack did his best to give back what he got. Nathan brought up his hands and dug his fingers into Jack's shoulder muscles. Jack moaned with pleasure and pressed himself against Nathan's warmth.

It took a while before he broke free for air.

"Just the one," Nathan said, teasing.

"Um. Yeah. Call it motivation. Um. It was supposed to be motivation for you, but wow."

"It won't take me a year," Nathan repeated, his voice low and seductive. And then he slipped inside and left Jack standing in the doorway with a peculiar mix of arousal, hope, and the foolish sense that he was denying himself what he wanted out of some misplaced perverse sense of duty.


	17. Chapter 17

The next morning, Nathan went to visit Henry. Ever since his rescue, Henry had been the one to come to him. Henry had stopped by for brief visits at Jack's place or to chat at the neutral ground of Cafe Diem. Nathan always treated him politely, but deep down he still felt uncomfortable around him. 

The garage looked the same as always. Battered, dusty, dirty, but with top-notch scientific equipment mixed in with the hand tools, and a false door behind which the pricey dust-sensitive pieces lived. Henry smiled at the sight of him; a mix of warmth and hope.

"Nathan, it's good to see you," Henry said.

"Yeah. Can I invite myself inside?"

"Of course." Henry looked a bit startled, but ever the good host, he ushered Nathan in to his living room.

This, too, was unchanged. Batik wall hangings, African wooden sculptures on the end tables, wood floors stained dark but lined with thick rugs, and a comfortable couch and two equally comfortable armchairs. The workshop had never felt like a threat, but inside, Nathan felt his breath tighten. Deliberately, he exhaled slowly.

"What's on your mind?" Henry asked.

He looked concerned. VR Henry had never truly looked concerned, Nathan realized. He'd looked sympathetic, encouraging, impatient, and just plain blank, but never truly concerned. That oversight surely reflected a blind spot on the part of the programmers. Like Jack's stammer, it helped keep him grounded.

Nathan exhaled again, then mustered up his courage and looked Henry in the face. "There's a conversation that I need to have with you which I've been putting off."

Guilt crossed Henry's face. "I understand. You want to know how I could have done it. Altered time, and then wiped Jack's memories. Jack... I know you two are developing a special relationship. Jack and I have never discussed this. At first, I wasn't willing. Now, I hardly feel like I can presume."

This wasn't exactly what Nathan had planned to bring up. But he could see that Henry had things he needed to say, and besides, Nathan was curious.

Henry continued, "All I can say is that I was acting irrationally when I disrupted the timeline. I regret it very much now, of course, but it took me time to grow into that remorse. At first, even when I saw how it led to disaster, I just couldn't think past saving Kim. Nothing else mattered to me, nothing else felt real. And Jack... I'm so grateful now that he stopped me. But at the time, I was angry. Even then, in the throes of grief, I knew that what I felt was unfair and irrational. He was the one who had cause to be angry at me, not vice versa. But you know Jack. He never blamed me for a moment. He wrestled me to the ground, then the next day he turned up wanting to be the one to comfort me. I couldn't deal with that.

"But please don't think that I did what I did just for my own sake. Nathan, I know this sounds like rationalization, but it's the truth. I tried to allow Jack to just go about his life with his memories intact. What I saw was that his memories distorted things.

"In that other reality, he married Allison. The memory of that relationship changed his behavior toward her. He offended her. He acted presumptuous, overly forward. She told me with considerable distaste that he answered a call from her while in the shower. Because he remembered being intimate with her, he could not treat her merely as the friendly but casual work colleague which she was.

"I honestly don't know if Jack's behavior was the only variable. But Jack came to me and told me with great grief that Allison had chosen to renew her relationship with you. I felt... no I _knew_ that I had ruined Jack's future. I had deprived him of the life he was meant to have. Later, I came to a different understanding. I no longer believe that each of us have only one person we are meant to be with. Rather, we have within us the capacity to build connections, and what enriches our life is not only who we build them with, but the lifelong process of making them deeper and deeper over the course of time.

"But at the time, I thought the kindest thing I could do for Jack was free him from being tormented by the memory of a future he could never have. What I did, I did partly in anger. But I would never have done it if I didn't truly believe it would spare him pain."

Nathan had listened quietly through Henry's confession, making no response except the occasional nod to show he heard. Now he smiled, a bit wistfully. "What an odd tangled bunch we make," he said. "Myself and Allison, Jack and Allison, now hopefully myself and Jack. Henry, I don't approve of your behavior. But I myself have made choices I regret. I put myself behind bars because I chose to trust a group of violent revolutionaries instead of the people closest to me. How about if you and I just let go of old mistakes and make a new beginning?"

Henry offered his hand. Nathan took it, and squeezed firmly. "I'd like that very much," Henry said warmly.

"There's something else."

"All that I just said... that isn't even what you came here about, is it?" Henry laughed ruefully. "It's been on my mind, not yours. Well, thank you for listening. It did me good to say it."

"Sure." Nathan smiled. "Henry, you already know the secret to time travel, don't you?"

Henry's face closed off. For a moment, Nathan flashed on the V.R. Henry. The instinct to retreat was strong. But he forged on, "Henry, I need to understand. I can't live in the moment, like Jack. I need to know the truth of things. Even if not all the assumptions can be tested, I still need a working theory to wrap my brain around. I need to know how you brought me back."

Slowly, Henry nodded. "Just please tell me you understand the gravity of this."

"Trust me, this world is not one I want to change. All I want to know is that it's going to stay in existence. Bear in mind, I already know most, maybe all of what you're about to show me. What I need is confirmation that you know too."

"I believe you," Henry said. "Let's do this the old fashioned way. I don't want any chance of electronic eavesdropping."

That sent a flicker of deja vu through him, but not in a bad way. Henry was acting as he himself had acted, not as V.R. Henry would have. Henry brought out a yellow lined tablet and began to write.

Henry began to write. Nathan recognized the equations that Leo had used to disrupt time, and the ones he had used to stabilize it at the cost of his own place in the timeline. Henry listed the ones that S.A.R.A.H., Fargo, and Zane had used to bring him back. They matched his own untested theories. Henry added in the equations for the Bridge Device. He added in the ones he had used to try to save Kim Anderson. Finally, he added a speculative set defining proper use of the Bridge Device. Everything hung together in a precise and beautiful peek into an aspect of the cosmos which humanity was not ready to understand.

"Good," Nathan said. "Thank you. Now let's get rid of them."

"We'll burn them in the garage."

Henry torched the papers, sending bright red flames leaping up, accompanied by a slight wisp of smoke which the air filters quickly removed. Just seconds, and it was done.

"Can I have some water," Nathan said. He felt hot; he could hardly breathe. Henry looked at him with concern and guided him back inside. He made Nathan sit with his head down, then brought water. Nathan shook.

"Should I call someone?" Henry asked. "An ambulance? Jack?"

Nathan shook his head. "I have... in my jacket..."

Henry grabbed his jacket and dug a bottle of pills out. He opened the bottle, took one, and held it out. Nathan's hands were shaking too badly to take it, though. Henry closed one hand over Nathan's and guided it to his mouth. He managed to swallow, chase it with water, and then he just concentrated on breathing. He knew the panic attack would be over faster if he didn't fight it. To his relief, Henry sat nearby but didn't stare. Part of Nathan cringed in humiliation, but another part was grateful for the company.

The attack passed off quickly. They didn't tend to last long. As always, it left him feeling shaky and exhausted.

"Are you all right?" Henry asked a little too loudly. Nathan smiled, because this was pure Henry. V.R. Henry wouldn't have been rattled at all.

"I really am," he said. "I didn't realize how much this was weighing on me. I was more afraid than I liked to admit that if I ever revealed my work, the simulation would end." Henry looked stricken at that, so Nathan hastened to reassure him. "It's all right now. It's over. This was what I needed."

"Are you sure you're all right?"

"Yes, except... I thought I was past the random need to nap, but if I could borrow your couch for just a few minutes?"

A slow smile began to spread across Henry's face. He clearly recognized the request for what it was: a sign of trust.

#

Nathan dreamed. He saw himself alone, successful but not happy. Jack and Allison came to him, wanting his help, telling him that years of his life would be wiped blank. He didn't care much, except to feel a dull sort of bitterness that Eureka could still rob what little life he had. See me, he thought, but no one did.

Then he saw himself with Allison, outside on a sunny day. She wore a white dress, but it was not the wedding he remembered. Jack showed up, weary and lonely. Look at him, Nathan tried to say, but he couldn't speak. Jack moved as if every bit of him hurt, but Nathan had eyes only for Allison. Henry spoke, "Love is timeless."

Then he saw himself in the time lab, dissolving into dust as Jack watched. Jack promised to take care of Allison, but his eyes pleaded for Nathan not to go. The time lab faded. He saw Kevin twisting clay in his hands. What are you making? Allison asked, but Kevin stayed silent.

Images flashed faster. He saw Henry telling Jack "I'll make it easy for you," and Jack holding a hand to his head in bewilderment. He saw Allison holding a pregnancy test in one hand and the logic diamond in the other, weeping. He saw Jack holding Jenna. Allison called him Carter, and never noticed the look of quiet loneliness that crossed his face. All of them: Jack, Allison, himself, Henry, but always one of them alone.

More faces flashed by. Fargo, straightening a picture of him so it hung just so. Zane, behind bars again. Kevin, grown to adulthood, never fully emerging from his autistic inner world, living out his years in a group home. Jack, alone. But then Henry looked at him and spoke. "Everything is going to work out as it should."

He woke with the drained, disoriented feeling that comes with sleeping too long midday. The clock showed that he'd been asleep for nearly two hours. A glass of water sat on the end table, and Henry had put out a tray of cheese, crackers, and vegetables with dip in the dining room. He didn't see Henry, but as soon as he stood, Henry emerged from his office.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"Yes, quite a lot, actually." Somehow, while dreaming, his unconscious mind had settled things. He chatted a bit longer with Henry, stayed until Grace returned home so he could greet her too, then went home to shower and shave. He had a mission.

#

When Nathan arrived, Jack stepped outside his house and asked S.A.R.A.H. to turn off audio monitoring. His face was alight with curiosity. Nathan had provoked that curiosity deliberately, to make sure he didn't chicken out.

"You said you wanted to speak to me in private?" Jack said.

"Yes. You asked me if I knew you were real, and I have my answer." He took a deep, shaky breath. "All our perceptions are only provisionally real."

Jack cocked his head and looked at him quizzically. "That's what you said before, but somehow you're saying it differently," Jack said.

This was the make-or-break conversation; either Jack would accept his answer with all its limitations, or they would be unable to move forward. "I've resolved the situation in my mind to the extent that it is resolvable. We all go through life in a world we can never prove is real. Some people live their whole lives through and never question the validity of their perceptions. Others raise the question, but only as an intellectual exercise. Others raise it and are tormented by it, sometimes to the point of insanity. Others learn to live with the ambiguity. Because of my experiences, I will probably always experience moments of doubt in ways that people who have never had their perception of reality called into question do not. But I am confident that this will not be an undue burden for me or for those close to me."

"What changed?" Jack asked curiously. "I mean, you don't have to answer if you don't want to. It's just, it's such a quick turnaround."

Nathan saw the open, honest curiosity and lack of judgment on Jack's face and let out a shaky laugh. Of course. Jack was nobody's fool, but he trusted intuition as much as logic. At Cafe Diem, he'd sensed something off about the way Nathan carried himself, so he'd put the brakes on. But this truly hadn't been a test—any answer that Nathan was able to live with would satisfy Jack.

"Henry offered definitive proof that I wasn't being held in order to extract information on time travel. In theory, it's still possible that I'm being held in a VR simulation, but that's not the best fit for the data. The thought that I am still being in a VR world is merely a fear, and I've never been one to let fear hold me back. There's one more thing I'd like to do, though, and I'd really like it if you came along."

"Yeah?"

"I'd like to leave town."

"Yeah, I get that," Jack said immediately. "I went through the same thing after that therapy device malfunctioned. Hang on, I'll grab some sandwiches and we can make it a picnic."

The drive was gorgeous. Nathan felt yet another layer of residual tension melt away when they crossed the boundary of Eureka's holographic screen. He didn't need to go far, but since this was a picnic, he drove to a waterfall that fed Lake Archimedes. He and Jack found an oversized rock to lean against and spread the picnic cloth out. Except for the roar of the waterfall, the place was silent.

Nathan found himself unaccountably nervous. He'd already kissed Jack, but now he could barely meet his gaze. His earlier confidence had come in part from detachment—the part of him that didn't believe in the reality of the world spurred him to take risks he might have otherwise been afraid of. This agony of nervous anticipation was half pleasure, half torture.

"May I?" Jack said, and lay a hand on Nathan's shoulder. It startled him, and he nearly jerked away. But he managed to nod, and Jack wedged himself between Nathan and the rock and began to massage his shoulders. In one sense, it was relaxing, but in another, it left him drunk on Jack's presence. He turned, and their eyes met. They both started laughing over nothing in particular. Then Nathan leaned in. Jack did the same.

The kiss was slower and gentler than their first, but when Nathan pulled away, he felt like singing.

"To new beginnings," Jack said.

#

S.A.R.A.H. attempted to monitor the progress of Jack and Nathan's relationship, but they began to seek privacy for more and more of their interactions, and thus she had little solid information. Nonetheless, she felt hopeful. On some nights, Jack did not return home at all. Although S.A.R.A.H. missed him, she felt sure this was a positive sign.

Finally, one morning Jack said, "Zoe, can you make sure to be home for dinner tonight? Nathan will be joining us. So will Kevin and Jenna." Zoe smirked knowingly as she agreed, and S.A.R.A.H. felt her hopes grow stronger. She prepared everyone's favorites, regardless of calorie count or cholesterol concerns. It would do no harm to bend her rules just once.

That evening as they all sat down to eat, Jack said, "Nathan and I have something to share with you. Maybe you've already guessed. But we're together, and we're pretty serious about each other."

Zoe and Kevin both responded with big grins. Jenna most likely did not understand, but seeing them smile prompted a smile from her too.

"I guessed," Zoe said. "Come on, Dad, I'm a girl. I can tell these things."

"I guessed too!" Kevin protested.

"Yeah, because I told you!"

Jack looked put upon, but Nathan was openly laughing.

"I can see this will be interesting," Nathan said.

#

That night, Nathan stayed. By then, Kevin had returned to his mother's home, and Zoe had left to spend the night with a friend.

"Not that you can only stay over when I'm gone," she said frankly. "I just thought you guys might like the place to yourself tonight."

"Okay, this is not a conversation I want to be having with my daughter!" Jack said.

Zoe grinned. "Oh? I could pretend I don't get it, and stick around if that's better!"

"Go, go on! Out!"

S.A.R.A.H. observed one last interaction that night. Nathan took Jack's face in his hands, kissed him deeply, then looked intently into his eyes.

"You healed so much in me that I didn't even know was hurting," Nathan said.

"You did the same for me. I never realized how much I needed to know I had someone who would stick with me no matter what until you came into my life."

"Aren't you reversing things? You're the one who stuck by me."

"It's not that simple. I had the most recent chance, but it's not about keeping score. It's about knowing you would stand by me and never let go."

Nathan kissed him again. S.A.R.A.H. had already begun to shut down her monitoring systems even before Jack called for privacy. She did not need to intrude. She understood, now that she had Andy.

"It is done," she told Andy later. "It proved to be a more complicated project than I anticipated, but a most rewarding one too. I played a lesser role than I anticipated, but affairs of the heart are unpredictable, aren't they?"

"So much of life is, my Casita Bonita," he said. "I hope that you and I will always face life's unpredictability together."


End file.
